


Mirrorball

by dangitpeeta



Category: Hunger Games Trilogy - Suzanne Collins
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Ballroom Dancing, F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-08-04
Updated: 2017-02-25
Packaged: 2018-04-12 21:56:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 13
Words: 30,718
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4496208
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dangitpeeta/pseuds/dangitpeeta
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“We’ve been over this, Catnip.  Star Dance Challenge is the biggest stage in Panem.  Everyone watches.”<br/>“That’s what I’m afraid of,” she muttered as he opened the door for her.  </p><p>The Hunger Games meets ballroom dancing.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This idea has been floating around in my head for ages and I finally got it down on paper. I was watching Dancing With the Stars a couple of seasons ago and realized how easily The Hunger Games characters could slip into the ballroom world. This is loosely inspired by DWTS, and most of the characters here have a ballroom counterpart. 
> 
> I own nothing! All credit where credit is due.

“I can’t believe I let you talk me into this,” Katniss turned to Gale and scowled. “This is not going to go well.”

  
He pushed open the car door and motioned for her to follow him. She had to jog to catch up with his long strides on the sidewalk. “We’ve been over this, Catnip. Star Dance Challenge is the biggest stage in Panem. Everyone watches.”

  
“That’s what I’m afraid of,” she muttered as he opened the door for her.

  
“I will shove you inside,” he threatened when she hesitated. “The more people that see us, the more records we sell when we drop the new album. It’s the best exposure we could ask for. And besides the weekly stipend alone is worth it. We’ll be able to eat something other than squirrel while we wait for the money to roll in."

  
She sighed not bothering to admit that she knew he was right. She’d never give him that kind of satisfaction. The idea hadn’t sounded great to her from the beginning, but she’d let Gale convince her with talks of a fresh start and maybe even a little fun after all the bad that had seemed to pile up on her life in the past few years. She knew Prim would have been ecstatic she’d agreed to be on the show. It had been her favorite before the accident. The thoughts of her sister made her square her shoulders and step through the door.

  
“Welcome, welcome!” a woman with bright pink hair and skyscraper heels bustled towards them. “I’m Effie,” she smiled. “It’s so nice to meet you both. I just can’t believe they found two stars from the wilds of District Twelve to be on the show. We didn’t know you people had civilized talents. But look at the two of you. Striving past your humble beginnings and making it to the capitol. It’s like a movie.” Katniss scowled at the woman as Gale attempted to stifle a laugh at her ridiculous accent. “Well…” she said, looking them both over. “We better get you over to Haymitch.” She led them down a long hall that was filled with pictures of past winners and so much glitter that Katniss’s eyes crossed by the time they made it to an office at the end.

  
Haymitch looked up as she ushered them inside. “Well, well, well look what the cat dragged in from The Seam,” he grinned. Katniss scowled at him. “Whoa sweetheart, put that thing away. Nobody wins a tacky mirror ball trophy by scowling.” She scowled even deeper. He laughed at her. “I guess we know who’s getting kicked off the first week,” he laughed up at Effie.

  
She nodded. “He’s right, Katniss. Manners matter. The Capitol voters want to see people having fun. Smiles on and chins up. Bright eyes and bushy tails. Just try it, dear.” Katniss gave Gale a withering look before forcing a smile that looked more like a grimace. Effie frowned. “Well…don’t worry dear. We’ll work on it.”

  
“Alright,” Haymitch took a swig from his glass. “I’m going to level with you kids. You’re underdogs. Long shots to make it past the first week. The other dancers are all going to come in with built-in fan bases. The only way you’re going to move forward is if the audience connects with you. That means you need to be likeable.”

  
“I thought this show was about dancing,” Katniss groused.

  
He chuckled. “It’s a television show, sweetheart. You have to dance well, but how the audience reacts to you will influence your story lines. And yes,” he held up his hand, “this show is as scripted as any soap opera. Each couple has a story line. Sometimes they’re organic. Sometimes people are so boring that I have to make something up. And sometimes the network wants to play up a certain angle and that’s where the editing goes. There’s always a showmance, there’s always a wah wah wah inspirational story. You may not like your edit, but that’s life."

 

Gale sat up. “So what about us? What are our storylines?”

  
Haymitch bowed his fingers. “To be determined. These interviews today will help me determine your partners and who I think you are within the puzzle of the show. Then I’ll be observing rehearsals for the first week to firm up the plans.” They both nodded. “Now I’m going to be asking you a lot of personal questions and I need you to answer as honestly as possible. You aren’t going to like it…especially you,” he pointed at Katniss. “But I need as much information as possible in order to create a strategy that gives you maximum exposure. Got it?” They nodded again. “Now you get out of here,” he waved Gale off.

 

“Come along, Gale,” Effie took his arm. “We’ll have you meet with a prep team to get you camera ready.” Gale grimaced as she pulled him out. Katniss and Haymitch both snickered.

  
“Don’t worry, they won’t do much to him. He has that tall, dark, and woodsman thing that the Capitol idiots go crazy for.” He eyed her. “They’ll have their work cut out with you though.”

  
She sat back and crossed her arms with a glare. “Obviously they haven’t gotten their hands on you yet,” she smirked.

  
He laughed. “Oooh, I like this one. You’ve got spunk. Not that I’d expect any less. I know all about you Katniss Everdeen.” The smirk fell off her face, and she shifted nervously. “Yup, I know all about you losing your dad in a mine explosion years ago. And how your mom checked out and you raised your little sister on your own for years before your mom finally woke up. And how two years ago little Primrose and your mother were both lost in a horrible car accident. It took awhile for you to rejoin society, but you threw yourself into music with your old friend Gale and the song you wrote for Primrose was picked up for one of those sob story movies. I miss anything?”

  
She shook her head. “I don’t want to talk about those things.”

  
He ignored her. “You and Gale an item?”

  
“NO!” she made a face. “He’s my best friend.”

  
“Never?” he grinned.

  
“God no. Gross.”

  
“Okay…so are you dating anyone?”

  
“What does that matter?” she slunk back further in the chair.

  
“No boyfriend…” he made a note on his pad. “And no friends either I assume.”

  
“Like you have friends,” she muttered.

  
He laughed and threw back the rest of his drink. “Effie,” he hollered.

  
She came tottering back in on her ridiculous outfit. “You screamed?”

  
“I’m done with her. Take her to Cinna.”

  
Effie put her hands on her hips. “Please.”

  
“Please what?” Haymitch made a face.

  
“Manners, Haymitch. Say please when you’re ordering people around.” He made a face at her. “Come along dear,” she took Katniss’s arm as she rolled her eyes at Haymitch. “Cinna is our costume designer extraordinaire. You’ll love him. But first you’ll meet with the prep team. They’ll make you a clean slate for Cinna to work with.” She led her down a hall where three people were waiting. “Katniss this is Flavius, he’s an amazing hair artist. That’s Venia, she’ll take care of the waxing and your skin, and Octavia makeup and nails. I’ll leave you in their capable hands for now. They’ll take you to Cinna when you’re ready.”

  
Katniss looked skeptically at the oddly coiffed and dressed team who was waiting eagerly in front of her as Effie bustled out the door. Venia ushered her to a small dressing room and pointed out a cushy white robe. “Go ahead and strip down and put this on. There’s slippers there as well. Come out when you’re ready.”

  
She heard them chatting animatedly as she changed. She cursed Gale under her breath one more time before stepping out. She was sat in a chair and made awkward conversation as she was plucked, waxed, polished, and brushed. When they finally deemed her ready she turned to face the mirror expecting to have green hair or no eyebrows, but was pleasantly surprised to look like a fancy version of herself.

  
“Gorgeous,” Octavia smiled. “Cinna will be pleased.” She took her arm. “Are you alright?”

  
Katniss nodded. “I look…pretty,” she said in awe.

  
“Of course you do,” Flavius said. “You’re a dish.” They led her down the hall into a huge room full of sewing machines and dress forms. Every surface was covered in glitter, rhinestones, and feathers. She looked around wide eyed and her eyes landed on a mannequin that was wearing just enough rhinestones to be considered not naked. She eyed it warily and jumped when she heard her name.

  
“Katniss Everdeen. I’m glad to finally meet you. I’m Cinna.”

  
She mustered up a small smile. “I’m not wearing that,” she pointed.

  
Cinna laughed. “No, that’s for Joanna. She’d rather be naked, but we do have some standards. I haven’t started on yours yet. I like to get know people first. So I can make the right dress for them.”

  
“So you’re here to make me look pretty.”

  
“I’m here to help you make an impression.” He looked at her. “The most important thing is for you to stand out. Standing out will get your votes. And votes are your lifeline in this competition.” She nodded. “So do you trust me?”

  
She studied him. “Yes. I think I actually do.”

  
He grinned. “I’ll take care of you Katniss.” He spent the next half hour holding color swatches up to her skin and taking her measurements. “Alright, I’m done with you. We’ll meet again once you have your partner and your first dance.”

  
“Okay,” she nodded. “Thanks, Cinna.”

  
She headed back towards Haymitch’s office to find Gale. Just as she was about to knock, she caught sight of a large group from the corner of her eye. She ducked back around the corner to watch them. They were laughing loudly and joking, and Katniss knew immediately they were the pro dancers. She even recognized a few from the times Prim had forced her to watch the show. She skimmed her eyes over the women who were all gorgeous with perfect bodies to the men who were no less gorgeous. Her eyes landed on a mop of curly blond hair and she gasped softly when he turned. She’d know those blue eyes anywhere. The boy with the bread. The baker’s son who had moved away at some point during high school never to be heard from again. She blushed deeply when she thought about how she hadn’t thanked him. She meant to, really she did. But she wasn’t good at saying things. She could remember the feel of his eyes on her from across a classroom, and the guilt that wracked her each day she stayed silent. And then one day he was gone. The rumor was his father had gotten the opportunity to open a higher class bakery in the Capitol. But here he was. She groaned and let her head hit the hard wood of Haymitch’s door. Before she could gather her wits the door swung open and she fell backwards into Gale. She turned around and glared at him.

  
“Don’t get mad at him, Sweetheart,” Haymitch chuckled. “You’re the one who’s beating down the door.”

  
She ignored him. “Are you almost done? We need to go.” Gale shrugged and looked at Haymitch.

  
Haymitch hit a button on his phone. “Effie? Sweetheart and the Woodsman are ready to go.” He looked at both of them with a smirk before Effie came bustling in.

  
“Oh, don’t you both look amazing. Those prep teams do beautiful work, don’t they? You look positively civilized.” Their lack of response did not seem to deter Effie. She handed each of them a folder and a set of keys. “Directions to the show’s apartments you’ll be staying in are in the packet along with any information you might need. Here are your keys.” She walked them out of Haymitch’s office and to the front door. Thankfully it seemed the group of dancers had moved elsewhere in the building. “Now, you should be here at ten on Monday morning. Please don’t be late. We hate latecomers. It’s just bad manners. Get some sleep this weekend, Monday is going to be a big big day!”

  
Katniss glared at Gale as they got into his car. “It wasn’t that bad. And you do look pretty, Catnip.”

  
She punched his arm and decided she’d ignore him for the rest of the drive.

  
***

Of course they couldn’t do anything the simple way. They couldn’t just tell her the name of her partner and let them get to work. Nope, they had to spend an entire day getting all fixed up and then meet their partners live on tv after hours of talking head interviews and a photoshoot. She had been made up, interviewed, and dressed by Cinna. She looked down at herself. Cinna was good at his job, she couldn’t deny that. Not that she was happy in the rhinestoned dress she was currently sporting, but even she could admire the handiwork. The neckline of the black bodice swept down modestly and made the most of her less than ample bust. She actually had cleavage for once in her life. The epaulet style cap sleeves showed off her toned arms, and the chiffon skirt swirled around her legs when she walked. He and his crew had covered the entire thing with fire opal rhinestones, and if she moved quickly enough it looked like she had burst into flames. She spun around a few times in front of the mirror. She looked over when she heard a knock on the door. Gale poked his newly clean shaven face through the door. “Ready, Catnip? We have to be in the holding room in three minutes and I honestly don’t want to see what Effie does when someone’s late. That woman is terrifying.”

  
Katniss laughed. “I think you can take her Gale.” She gave herself one final look and joined him in the hall. “You look like a goob.”

  
He scoffed. “You don’t like these high waisted pants?!” he struck a pose.

  
“Goob,” she repeated and stalked off down the hall. She led him into the holding room which was currently housing the other stars.

  
“No way,” she heard Gale mutter beside her. “That’s Thresh Andrews. The greatest linebacker of all time,” he said pointing at the very large man sitting in the corner glaring at his ballroom shoes. “And oh my god, Catnip, that’s that model…the one that eats tacos and drips it all over her ti…well you know,” he said making a motion in front of his chest.

  
“Sounds like a fine lot they’ve put together here,” she said, looking around at the group that looked pretty ragtag if she was being honest. She jumped when a perky blonde girl with a bouncing bosom-real, she guessed- unlike Gale’s porno girl-scooted up to her.

  
“Hello! I’m Delly. You must be Katniss, it’s so nice to meet you. I just love that song. It’s so beautiful. Are you excited? I’m so excited. I’ve wanted to do this show for ages but my manager wanted to time it with a new project coming out. It finally lined up with one of my movie premieres. I can’t wait to find out who my partner is. I hope I get Rye Mellark, he’s so dreamy!” Katniss’s eyebrows shot up. So there were two Mellark brothers on the show. She had very little memory of Rye other than seeing him wrestle once. She’d never even noticed him on the show. She snapped back to attention when she realized that Delly was still talking. She seemed harmless enough, so Katniss decided to return the required pleasantries. Delly didn’t seem to mind her lack of enthusiasm. She filled Katniss in on the gossip: Thom, the millionaire businessman who was on some tv show, was going to promise his partner an expensive car if they won. Cato, who Delly had been in a movie with last year, had already tried and failed to hook up with Glimmer in the ten minutes they’d been in holding. Delly suspected he’d come after Katniss next. And the tiny little bird like girl standing near the crafty table was only fourteen. Katniss’s head swam with the onslaught of information, and she was more than glad when Effie pushed her way into the room to hustle them into a line backstage.

  
Katniss stood next to Gale in the back of the line. She couldn’t decide if she was annoyed that she wasn’t going to get it over with sooner or happy that she was going to get to see how everyone else handled themselves. The show’s host, Caesar Fliickerman, stood on a balcony that overlooked the ballroom that they would be dancing in on the show. His blue hair bounced as he straightened his tie, and Katniss wondered briefly how many surgeries it had taken to make him almost look younger than the fourteen year old who was just ahead of her in line. Her attention was drawn away from him quickly when her stomach flip flopped to the floor as the credit music started.

  
Gale’s porno crush (Glimmer, she soon learned) was the first called out. She was the kind of gorgeous that made every man drool. Cinna had draped her perfect body in a thin gold netting that left next to nothing to the imagination. She literally glimmered when she moved, and came across much more competently than expected. She looked thrilled when Finnick O’dair was announced as her partner. Finnick was one of the most popular pros with his unnatural good looks and dreamy green eyes. Katniss had always rolled her eyes at his flirtatious nature and golden boy title, but grudgingly admitted that he was an amazing dancer. He had always been Prim’s favorite. Katniss drew in a quick breath and turned her attention back to the interviews before thoughts of her sister took her out of the moment.

  
Next up was Boggs, an Army veteran who had lost a leg in battle. He was a stern looking man, but smiled brightly and gave his partner Clove a high five. An older lady named Mags shimmied her way out onto the floor as Clove led Boggs off. She looked regal in her long sleeve gown, and Katniss knew immediately that she was going to like her. Gale nudged her. “That’s the lady from those old movies our moms always watch.” The lady had to be nearing eighty, but she was still beautiful. A handsome dancer that Caesar introduced as Gloss joined them on stage. Gloss was clearly one of the oldest of the professional dancers, but he was still only half his partner’s age. Mags made the audience titter with laughter when she gave Gloss a big smacking kiss on the lips when he went to shake her hand. Yup, Katniss definitely liked her.

  
Delly looked back at her and held up crossed fingers. “I’m next. Here’s hoping for Rye!” she bounced out. Katniss looked over at the pros who were lined up on the opposite side of the stage. She realized suddenly that there were only two male pros left. Rue, the tiny fourteen year old, had been paired with some kid named Marvel, so that meant that the Mellark brothers were the only ones up for grabs. She crossed her fingers behind her back, but for the opposite reason Delly had requested. There was no way she could face Peeta and his deep searching looks every day in rehearsals. Absolutely no way she could dance the rumba with him. She put every ounce of her mental energy into willing Cesar to announce Peeta’s name as Delly’s partner. She let out a long breath she didn’t know she’d been holding when her wish came true. She saw Delly’s smile drop the tiniest bit when she realized she wasn’t going to be dancing with Rye, but she flashed an even brighter megawatt smile when he came on to the stage. Thank god, Katniss thought. At least she wouldn’t have to throw the competition the first week to get away from him.

  
“Peeta Mellark?” Gale said. “Didn’t he grow up in Merchantown? He was in your year at school wasn’t he?”

  
She nodded. “Yeah. He moved away in high school, I think. I only spoke to him a couple of times.”

  
“Wow. Small world. I’m so calling him ‘Townie,’” Gale grinned evilly. He jumped when Effie grabbed his arm. “I guess I’m next. See ya after, Catnip,” he waved as he was pulled away. Katniss watched him get paired with a classy looking blond named Madge who gave him a sweet smile. She hoped that the girl had some spunk hidden under the good girl looks because Gale would walk all over her otherwise. Gale was her best friend, but he could be stubborn and annoying when he felt like it.

  
She watched the last few people get paired up before Effie finally called her over. She had no idea why they’d saved her for last, but at this point she just wanted to get this over with. She wiped the permascowl off her face and stepped out onto the stage. The hot lights glared down on her and the audience cheers buzzed in her ears. She took a deep breath, thought of her sister, and stepped up to Caesar with a smile on her face. Out of the corner of her eye she caught sight of Peeta standing with Delly. His mouth had dropped slightly open and his eyes were full of a million emotions. She had to force herself to pull her eyes away from him. She glanced back at Ceaser and only then realized he had been speaking to her. “What?”

  
Caesar chuckled. “I think someone’s nervous,” he laughed with the crowd. “I said…that was quite an entrance you just made. That dress is amazing. Will you twirl for us?” Katniss had never in her life twirled before, but if she was ever going to twirl tonight would be the night. She turned in a few circles making the dress fly around her legs. On her third time around she could suddenly feel Peeta’s gaze on her just like they were back in school. She stumbled a bit. “Careful there!” Caesar took her arm to steady her. “You look positively on fire!” Caesar proclaimed. “Do you guys want to find out who our firey songbird’s partner is?” The audience roared to life once again. “You all know him as the bad boy of our ballroom, big brother to our newest pro, and three time Pemmy Award nominee…Rye Mellark!”

  
Rye jogged out, shook hands with Caesar, made a bit of small talk then offered his arm to Katniss. He led her off the stage waving to the crowd and just like that the show was over. All those nerves that had been eating her insides all day disappeared as the lights went down. They were herded back into the holding room. Katniss had lost hold of Rye’s arm in the shuffle, but had stuck close behind him. As much as she wanted to go and change into some yoga pants and a tank top she knew she needed to make nice with Rye first. She turned on her heel to the spot she had last seen him and put her hand on his arm. The blond head swiveled around and she squeaked when she realized that the navy blue eyes she had been expecting to peer at her from her partner’s face were actually a pair of much more familiar bright blue eyes.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter Two, y'all. I can't even begin to express how much those reviews meant to me! I'm glad people are liking the idea.

Katniss jerked her hand back as if she’d been burned. Peeta blinked twice before breaking into a huge grin. “Katniss!” he turned to face her fully.  “It’s so good to see you.  It’s been forever.”

She took a breath and willed herself to stay cool. She nodded at him. “It has been. I had no idea you were involved in all this.”

“It’s my first season,” he said. “But I’ve been dancing since we left twelve.  My mom signed me and Rye up because it was fashionable at the time.  And it just kind of stuck,” he shrugged.  “But you…you look amazing, Katinss.  Just like I remember.”

She felt her cheeks heat up and thanked the stars that her olive skin wouldn’t betray her blush. “It’s all smoke and mirrors and Cinna’s dress, trust me.”

“Nah,” he grinned.  “I’ve seen your picture in the magazines. It’s all you.”

His eyes found hers and she felt her stomach drop.  He had always been so kind, so nice to everyone. She didn’t believe in owing people, and she owed this kid her life.  She hated that and the guilt that came with being in his presence again even after so long.  The last thing she needed was him giving her compliments.  She knew she was being silly.  He probably didn’t even really remember her.  And if he did it was mostly as the skinny little girl who never even said thank you after he risked his mom’s wrath for her.  She’d find a way to pay him back.  Then they’d be even and she could stop feeling weird around him.  But until she figured out a way she’d just avoid him.  Starting now. She shrugged uncomfortably. “I didn’t mean to interrupt your conversation.  I actually thought you were your brother.”

“I gotta cut my hair.  People have been making that mistake with alarming frequency lately.” He ran his hand through his curls as his cheeks slightly pinked. He looked around the room.  “Rye’s over there,” he pointed.

She glanced over.  “Okay. Well, it was nice to see you again.  I’m sure we’ll see each other around.”

He caught her hand as she turned to leave.  “You can count on it,” he said with a crooked grin.  He squeezed her hand and let her go.  She opened and closed her hand as she walked away towards Rye.  She shook her head at herself.  Her nerves were shot. People shaking her hand shouldn’t give her the shivers, yet here she was unable to shake off the encounter.  She needed to find Rye, get out of this dumb dress, and get back to the tiny apartment they were putting her up in.

“There she is,” Rye said, slipping his arm around her when she got close enough.  “Thought I’d lost you already.”  He gave her a cheeky grin that was so like Peeta’s but with the added bonus of not making her stomach flip flop.  While they looked very much the same, Rye carried himself in such a different manner that they almost didn’t seem related. 

“What a lucky woman you are, getting to dance with this stud,” Caesar wiggled his eyebrows. “Women all over the world are jealous of you…some men too.”

She forced out a smile. “I’m looking forward to it.”

“Me too,” Rye hugged her to his side.  “I love you, and I would love to have a showmance, but first I have to make sure that you and that super tall guy aren’t dating.”

She made a face. “No we are not. We definitely are not. That’s gross.  And I’m not exactly sure what a showmance is, but I doubt we are going to be having one.”

Caesar laughed. “Excellent.  This one is going to keep you on your toes, Rye.”

Rye put his hand over his heart.  “I’m wounded.”

“I think you’ll live,” she laughed.

“Uh huh. Well, if you don’t want to showmance with me, then you’re going to have to be a good dancer. This is my last season, I want this win.”

“I never enter anything I don’t intend to win.”

“Good. A competitor. You better give me all you got.”

“Be careful what you wish for,” she grinned. He laughed and Katniss found herself warming to him.  She rarely felt comfortable with people even after knowing them for years.  It was much easier to keep up the walls she had carefully built around herself if she didn’t let people in.  But she had a feeling Rye was going to worm his way in to a friendship.  She liked him. She couldn’t help it.  She wasn’t exactly sure why everyone was falling all over him and calling him sexy.  He was nice to look at, sure, but he seemed like a goofy big brother rather than a sex symbol.  Maybe she just liked a different type of guy.

“So when do we start?” she asked.

“Tomorrow at 11.  We have studio 6.  Wear something comfy. They’ll have everything you need waiting for you.”  He held up his hand to fist bump her.  “Go get some rest. You’re gonna need it.”

***

Peeta let himself into the apartment he shared with Rye and tossed his keys down.  “Hey, Peet,” Rye called from the couch where he was playing a video game.  “Wanna play?”

“Nah.  How long have you been home?  I finally got out after Caesar roped us into a half hour conversation.

“Like an hour.  My partner bailed almost right after we went off the air, so I snuck out when no one was looking.”

“Katniss left that quickly?  Was something wrong?” he asked quickly.

“Nah, I’m pretty sure that chick just doesn’t really do crowds. Or small talk.  Or smiling.” He twisted his head to the side and banged on the controller.  “Damn, he killed me.”  He switched it off.  “So are we gonna talk about this?”

“Talk about what?” Peeta asked as he pulled off his shoes.

“About that the fact that my dance partner is the girl you used to get hard for every day in middle school.”

“God, Rye,” Peeta blushed deep red.  “I did not,” he protested weakly.

“Yeah, ya did. We used to share a room, remember?  You looooved her.  You’d say her name in your sleep.  God knows what nasty things you were dreaming about her doing to you.”

“I used to have a crush on her.  That’s all. A tiny crush.”

“Uh huh.  You came home from your first day of school saying you were gonna marry her.  Then you were too much of a wuss to ever talk to her, but you always stared at her like a creeper.”

“I wasn’t a creeper! I was just shy!  And she’s…she was Intimidating.  And excuse me if I didn’t think that right after her father dying was the time to go confess my love to her.  She was a wreck.  And then we moved. I didn’t think I’d ever see her again.”

“I know you, Peet. You’re a romantic.  There’s a big part of you that’s never let that feeling that you had at five years old go away.  You never got over her.”

“I’ve been with lots of women,” he said defensively.

“Yeah, been with.  But you’ve never had a real girlfriend.  You compare them all to her.”

“I don’t,” he said.  “I don’t even know her.”

“Well, now’s your chance.  You aren’t a shy twelve year old dork anymore.  You’re an outgoing twenty year old dork now.”

“Thanks for the confidence, Rye,” he punched him as he walked by on the way to his room.

Rye laughed.  “Hey man, she turned down my showmance offer.  So maybe you have a shot with me out of the picture. Unless she likes girls.”

“You propositioned her for a showmance? In the five minutes that you were together?”

“It was a joke mostly.  I wouldn’t do that to you.  God, I’d never hear the end of it if I even pretended to like her.”

“You better treat her right, Rye.  I swear if I hear you’re throwing micpacks at her, I’ll end you.”

“Yeah, yeah, whatever.”

“And keep your hands off her.”

Rye snorted and Peeta gave him a look. Rye held his hands up. “Okay, okay, Dad.  No touching other than dancing.”  He pushed up off the couch and started to his room.

“And don’t tell her any embarrassing stories about me!” Peeta called after him.

“Oooh good idea.  I hadn’t thought of that,” Rye grinned evilly as he slammed his door shut.

Peeta frowned.  “Damnit!”

***

Katniss sat in the studio the next morning waiting for Rye.  For all his talk about 11 sharp, he was fifteen minutes late.  She surveyed herself in the mirror.  When she arrived she had been rushed to the prep team who had traded out her yoga pants and t-shirt with a pair of exercise leggings and a tank top.  They had left her braid alone on Cinna’s orders, but had coated her eyelashes with mascara and powdered her face.  She figured she looked decent enough.  They had given her a pair of dance shoes and also a pair of dance sneakers, but hadn’t advised which to put on.  She had decided to go with neither and ask Rye when he arrived.  If he ever showed up.  Five minutes later she was seriously considering going to track him down when the door flew open.

“They are really running this ‘girl on fire’ thing into the ground,” Rye said, without preamble.  “I just got our music.  _Fire Burning_.”  She looked at him blankly.  “Oh come on, you’ve heard it. It was on the radio nonstop. _Somebody call 911! Shawty fire burning on the dance floor, whoa!_ ,” he sang and danced in a circle around her. 

She raised an eyebrow. “You sound like a dying cow, Rye,” she said.  “You’re seriously tone deaf.”

He made a face at her.  “Rude.”

She shrugged. “Stick to dancing, kid.”

“Whatever. Anyway,” he eyed her.  “As I was saying, we got our song for the cha cha.  And the orders to costume you in red so even the dumbest audience member gets that you are on fire.”

“Okay,” she shrugged. “I don’t care what I wear.  As long as I’m not naked.

“Damn, there went all my plans,” he snapped his fingers with a grin.  She rolled her eyes at him.  He grabbed her hips and twirled her around.  “You won’t be naked, but you will be sexy.”

She stumbled sideways into him.  “I don’t know how to be sexy.”

He sat her back on her feet. “Of course you do.”

“Nuh uh.  I’m not exactly a sex symbol, Rye.”

He looked her up and down.  “You’re sexy.  Trust me, I’m an expert.”

She blushed. “I so hate you right now,” she muttered, mortified.

“Okay, okay, we’ll worry about the steps first, then we’ll make them sexy once you get the basics.  Okay?”  She nodded weakly.  He pulled her in front of him. “Okay, babe, show me rhythm,” he motioned to her hips.

“What?” she shrunk back into herself.

“Move your hips. Show me what I’m working with,” he started shaking his hips at her.

She put her hands over her face to hide from him. “I can’t do that.”

“Of course you can,” he swiveled his hips even more.  He pulled her hands away from her face.  “Come on, you can do it.”  He put his hands on her hips and nudged them forward and back.  “This is Cuban motion.  You have to get this before you can do any of the Latin dances.”  He guided her hips back and forth.  “Good. Keep going.”  He pulled his hands away and she immediately stopped.  He narrowed his eyes at her.  “Do it.”  

She hesitantly moved her hips then put her hands back over her face.  “This is so embarrassing!”

“It is not,” he said.  “You’re being silly.”

She glared at him.  “I look dumb.”

“I’m the professional. I’ll tell you when you look dumb.” He grabbed her hips again. “Close your eyes.  Pretend you aren’t here.  Think about your boyfriend or something, and relax.”

“I don’t have a boyfriend,” she scowled.

“Then think about George Clooney.  Or tall Gale. Or anyone that you think is hot. Think of puppies and kittens for all I care.  Just relax.”

“Fine,” she sighed and let out a breath.  She tried to clear her mind and relax.  She started getting more comfortable with the movement when Peeta’s face popped into her mind. Why was her mind bringing him up again? He _was_ really hot.  She loved the way his hair fell in his eyes and… Her eyes popped open and she stopped moving again.

Rye looked up at her. “What happened? You were doing good.”

“I go distracted,” she blushed furiously. She really hoped Rye couldn’t read minds. She pulled away and grabbed her water bottle.  She had blushed more times in this room today than she had in the last year.  She needed to focus.  She had to stop thinking about him.  She knew it was just because he was living in the back of her mind while she tried to figure out how to pay him back. That was all of course.  It had nothing to do with those long blonde eyelashes.  Jesus. Focus, Katniss. 

Rye raised a brow at her.  “All hot and bothered, Everdeen?”

“No!” God, there was the blush again.  “Let’s just work. Come on.”  She tossed down her water bottle and steeled herself for an embarrassing day of booty shaking.

***

Peeta waved goodbye to Delly and threw his bag over his shoulder as he peaked in to his brother’s studio.  They had carpooled, and Peeta really hoped Rye hadn’t forgotten him.  Rye and Katniss were indeed still in the room, and they both looked worse for wear.  Katniss’s braid was half out, and his brother was soaked in sweat.  She was either very good, or had given Rye a hard time for the majority of the day.  He sincerely hoped it was the latter. He watched as they ran a segment of the choreography.  Even though she looked hesitant she still moved her hips smoothly and kept up with the steps.  She really was gorgeous.  Even sweaty and exhausted he couldn’t take his eyes off of her.  He watched them for a while and suddenly realized she was heading for the door.  The same door that he was still leaning against. She pulled it open before he had a chance to move.  He half caught himself on the door so he fell in front of her rather than knocking her down.  He looked up at her. “Uh…hi?”

“Spy!” Rye hollered. “You were spying!”  He ran around Katniss and dropped on top of Peeta.

“Ooof. Get off me, Rye,” he pushed at him. “I wasn’t spying.  I was just seeing if you were still here…you know since you’re my ride.”  He scrambled up and brushed off his butt.  “And uh…I see you are still here…you were looking really good, Katniss.  I didn’t see that much!” he said quickly.  “I wasn’t spying. Just, you know, watching…I mean not that I was watching you.  Not in a creeper way, just…you are dancing well for your first day.  That’s all.  Good dancing.”

Her eyes widened.  She’d never seen Peeta ramble before.  He seemed completely flustered. She giggled.  She couldn’t help it.  She was the one that was supposed to be tongue tied.  “Thank you, Peeta.”

He rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment and watched her make plans with Rye for their next rehearsal.  She waved at him before leaving and he let his head fall back against the wall. “Idiot,” he berated himself.

Rye smirked. “Smooth, Peet, real smooth.”  He laughed at the pitiful look Peeta gave him.  “Come on, Creeper. Let’s go home and get you a beer.” Peeta followed him out of the studio and down the hall.  He caught sight of Katniss walking with Gale towards a pickup truck.  He made a face.  He irrationally hated Gale.  Always had, always would.  “She’s not dating him,” Rye said as they got into his car.  “She’s single.  And a virgin.”

Peeta choked on the sip of water he had just taken.  “She told you that?!”

“Of course not,” Rye said.

“Then how do you know?”

“I just spent four hours of my day teaching her to use her hips.  Either she’s never used them before or she’s a cold fish that just lays there.  I was giving her the benefit of the doubt.”

“You can’t know that. There’s no way to know that.”

Rye shrugged “I call it like I see it, man.”  Peeta rolled his eyes.  “I’m just saying I think you could get with her if you wanted.  And if you could manage to not fall on your ass when you see her next.”

‘Shut up,” Peeta sighed. 

***

Katniss leaned her head back against the seat of Gale’s old pickup with a sigh.  He glanced over.  “Tough first day?”

“I’m just tired,” she said.  “How did yours go?”

“Pretty good.  This Madge girl is really peppy. Like every second of the day.  It’s kinda annoying, but she’s also kinda cute.  She made me dance with a broom today to improve my posture.  I felt like a dumbass.”

Katniss burst out laughing.  “I feel your pain.  Rye made me do all these hip swirls and shakes and wanted me to look sexy doing it.  Spoiler alert…I’m horrible at it.”

He laughed. “I wish I could have seen your face.”

“Well I’m glad you couldn’t.  But I am willing to bet that that will be included on my video clips for the first dance.  So you can share your mirth with the rest of the world.”

“You always say that you aren’t good at things, or you don’t get things, and then you do it the best of everyone, Catnip.  I bet you get the highest score.” She snorted. “You’re gonna be better than Glimmer at least.  Me and Thom went next door to watch her when we were on a break and she is the most uncoordinated person I’ve ever seen.”

“Yeah but she’ll get votes because boys like boobs.  Doesn’t matter what she does.”

“Not if no one likes her,” Gale grinned.  “She’s a snot.  A hot snot, but a snot.  I heard her telling off her prep team for her fake eyelash coming off during rehearsal.”

“Why would you wear…never mind,” she shook her head.  “Maybe she’ll get kicked off first instead of me.”

“Maybe,” he nodded. “Though I’d miss the assets she brings to the group.”

“You’re a pig,” she made a face.  “Did you watch anyone else?”

“Delly and your boyfriend Peeta are in the room next door.  She’s looks decent so far, but Peeta’s really good.  Madge made me watch him.  She said he’s top five in the world.”

“Seriously?  In the world?”

“Yeah, they go to comps and stuff and he always wins.”

“Oh...” she punched his arm hard. “He’s not my boyfriend.”

“Ow! What the hell, Catnip?” he rubbed his shoulder. “I’m driving here!”

“He’s not my boyfriend! I’ve said like three words to him.”

He laughed. “Jesus, Catnip, I was just kidding.  But you like him!”

“I do not! I don’t even know him!”  She crossed her arms and looked out the window. 

“Wow, who ever thought Katniss Everdeen would fall for anyone let alone a townie.”

She glared at him. “Stop being an asshole and buy me a cheeseburger.”

He looked over and eyed her.  “You can’t order me around. I am definitely not your boyfriend.  If you want someone to cater to your every need you better call Mellark.”  She scowled at him. “Damn, okay. We’ll get a cheeseburger.”

“Good answer,” she crossed her arms. 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The song is "Fire Burning" by Sean Kingston


	3. Chapter Three

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here it is finally! Sorry for the delay. I had a job interview this week and most of my spare time was prepping for that. Hope you enjoy!

Katniss followed Rye into the green room during their lunch break.  She stepped around stretching dancers towards a table that was piled high with food.  The first day she and Gale had seen the crafty table, it seemed like a dream.  They couldn’t even identify all the different foods.  She filled a plate with a little of everything and walked over to a table where Gale was sitting with his partner, Madge.

“Hey Catnip,” he grinned as he pushed out the chair for her.  “You look like you’ve been working hard.”

She made a face at him. “That’s Gale speak for saying I look bad,” she told Madge.  “I hope he’s nicer to you than he is to me.”

“He can be nice when he feels like it,” Madge smiled.  Gale made a face at her and she wrinkled her nose at him.  She looked back up at Katniss. “You don’t look bad, your cheeks are nice and rosy.”  She glanced over when Rye sat down beside her. “Now your partner, on the other hand, looks a bit worse for wear.”

“You would too if your partner was a stubborn as a mule,” Rye said.

Gale smirked. “That sounds about like Catnip,” he patted her on the shoulder. 

“Like you’re one to talk,” she muttered.

“Me?” he said.  “Do I need to remind you of the number one most stubborn moment of all time, Everdeen?”

“No!” she said quickly. “Gale, no.”

Rye grinned. “I think she doth protest too much.  I am getting the feeling that this is an embarrassing story that needs to be told.”

“Who has an embarrassing story?” Peeta asked as he took the chair on the other side of Madge.

“Gale is going to tell us a little story about our dear friend, Katniss,” Rye said, looking at Gale with raised eyebrows.

Gale chuckled and Katniss slumped back in her chair and crossed her arms.  “On Katniss’s first day of high school she came barreling up to me after fourth period covered from head to toe in mud.  She was dripping everywhere and her hair was all in her face.  She begged me to take her home. I could tell she was upset so I let her be until we got in the car, but then I asked what the heck had happened to her.”

Katniss blushed deeply and shot a glance quickly at Peeta.  “Gale,” she warned.

Gale ignored her.  “Apparently the freshman class had gone out to the football field to do some get to know you exercises.  I managed to get out of her that she had been chosen to do a teamwork relay thing with some other kids.  Now Baby Katniss was not nearly as scary as grown Katniss.  She hadn’t quite perfected hiding her feelings yet, but Katniss was never a crier or one to run away.  She didn’t want to tell me, but I forced it out of her.  On her turn to run towards her teammate she had hit a patch of mud, fallen, and slid straight into her partner knocking him down with her.  So at some point I realize that she’s so upset because she likes this kid because why else would someone be that mortified over that?”

Katniss let out a little moan and dropped her head.  She wasn’t even going to chance looking down toward Peeta’s end of the table.  Damn Gale to hell. He just _had_ to tell this story.  Of all the blackmail stories he could have dug up he chose the one that starred Peeta Freaking Mellark.  Her only hope was that he didn’t remember, but it wasn’t likely that he’d forget being knocked over into a mud puddle and ending up in a tangle of limbs with her five years ago. “I hate you, Gale,” she muttered.

She was so busy avoiding everyone’s gaze that she missed the slight widening of Rye’s eyes and the look he exchanged with Peeta.  Peeta felt his own face redden slightly at the memory.  Being on top of Katniss in a mud puddle had pretty much been the best day of his life thus far.

“I haven’t even gotten to the good part yet, Catnip,” Gale waved her off.  “So I started teasing her, laughing a little because tiny little Katniss who barely talked had a crush on someone.  She scowled her meanest scowl at me and then ignored me until I stopped at a red light.  Before I even know what she was doing she jumped out of my truck and into the pouring rain.  I yelled after her, but she wouldn’t get back in the car.  Her stubborn ass walked three miles to her house in the rain that was getting harder and harder with me driving five miles an hour beside her. She didn’t say a word to me other than to tell me to fuck off about a thousand times.”

“I wish you had fucked off,” she said under her breath.

He laughed.  “You can say I’m stubborn all you want, but walking three miles in the rain because you liked a boy is the epitome of stubborn, Catnip.  And she’s only gotten worse with age.  You might as well give in to whatever she wanted, Rye.”

Madge looked at her sympathetically.  “Did you ever talk to the boy again?  The one you had a crush on?”

Katniss shrugged. She knew Madge was only trying to help, but she wished she’d just shut up.  “I walked the whole way because I was sick of Gale.  That’s all.” 

Katniss looked desperately up at the clock and tried fruitlessly to think of a way to get away from the table without looking like a fool or having to look at Peeta.  She’d never be able to look at him again now that Gale had opened his big mouth.  It was all his dumb fault.  She stepped on Gale’s foot heavily under the table. “Ow, Jesus, Catnip! What the hell?”

“Opps?” she shrugged, dropping her half-eaten banana back onto her plate.

“Hey now,” Madge said.  “Don’t hurt my partner.  We have a mirror ball to win.”

Rye scoffed.  “Yeah, right.  Everyone knows that we’re going to win. And the littlest Mellark is going to come in second.”  He glanced over when he didn’t get a reaction.  “Right, Peet?” he nudged him.

Peeta jumped.  He had no idea if Rye was right or if he was bullshitting as usual.  In all honesty, he hadn’t been paying a bit of attention to the conversation since Gale had said that Katniss had had a crush on him in high school.  Of course Gale couldn’t have known that he was the lucky kid that had ended up in the mud with Katniss.  If he knew he never would have told the story in front of them.  He remembered every second of that day.  The feeling of his breath being knocked of him, the slippery mud, the softness of her body under him, and the intenseness of the arousal that had come from the collision.  He had just been so glad the mud gave him a reason to rush to the bathroom so he could take care of the problem before it became too noticeable.  The last thing he’d wanted was for Katniss to think he was some sort of perv who got a boner from something like that.  He felt elated because he finally had a reason to speak to her.  He would ask her if she was alright.  He could manage that.  But by the time he got the mud mostly cleaned up and back out on to the field she had disappeared.  The sky had opened up a few minutes later and they were all forced back inside.  He had been so electrified from the experience that he had happily divulged it all to his brother on the way home from school.  Rye had rolled his eyes and begged Peeta to talk to her already.  But the next day Katniss had avoided him like the plague.  He had missed his chance. 

But now…Gale had said she had a crush on him.  And she hadn’t denied it. He wracked his brain to make sure she hadn’t knocked anyone else over that day.  He had to say something.  He couldn’t miss his chance again. His brain was whirring too fast to think.  “I lost my good luck penny that day,” he blurted.  He winced.  That was not at all what he had meant to say.  “Umm…I had one of those pennies that you flatten at tourist traps?  My dad and I flattened it on a trip to Yellowstone the day before Kindergarten started,” he said when he realized everyone was looking at him.  “It was lucky, and I guess it fell in the mud that day.” God, he was an idiot.

“I forgot that you two went to school together,” Madge said.  “Were you friends?”

“No way,” Gale cut in.  “There’s two classes in Twelve.  Seam and Townies.  Peeta and Rye were townies.  Me and Catnip are seam trash.  The two don’t mix.”

“I wanted to be friends,” Peeta piped in quickly.  “But I always figured she’d never want to talk to me.”

“Katniss doesn’t want to talk to anyone,” Gale snickered.

She elbowed him. “Shut up, Gale. Peeta had a million friends, Madge.  He didn’t need me.”  She pushed back her chair.  “We need to get back in the studio, Rye.” 

“Oh! Yeah,” he said, quickly stuffing the rest of his roll into his mouth and darting out of the room behind her.

Peeta watched her go then dropped his head into his hands with a frustrated growl.  Madge smiled knowingly and patted him on the back as she got up. “We need to go too, Gale.”

“Aye, aye, Captain,” he saluted her with a grin.  “Later, Townie.”

Katniss rushed down the hall towards the executive offices later that day when Rye finally released her from rehearsal.  They had done a step that Rye called the “sweetheart” countless times until she had managed to get through it without tripping or stepping on Rye’s toes.  She hated the step anyway because it made her think of Haymitch and his insistence of calling her sweetheart whenever he saw her. Rye had given her homework to practice and visualize the pattern, but she knew she’d blow it off.  She had a pretty solid handle on the steps and could walk it perfectly by herself.  But when Rye came in to lead her, everything went south.  He expected her to go from facing him to standing side by side on his right then switching to the left all while still doing the chacha steps.  He insisted she couldn’t get it because she wasn’t trusting his lead.  And she had to admit he was right because the first (and only) time she’d managed to complete it was when she was so worn out that she had stopped thinking about anything other than her poor tired feet.  She had to work on that whole trust thing.  The worst part was that it was literally five seconds out of their whole routine.  She had no idea how they were ever going to finish.

Even still she had a skip in her step as she approached Effie’s office.  The lady still kind of weirded her out with her every changing hair colors and her strong Capitol accent, but she had been more than helpful any time Katniss needed something.  And Effie was the only person that Katniss could think of that might be willing and able to help her with her new mission.

She had been searching for a way to repay Peeta since the first night she had seen him again.  She had thought until her head hurt and still come up with nothing.  He was richer than her and could probably buy whatever he wanted.  He could bake and probably cook much better than her.  She had no idea what sort of things he could possibly like, so a normal gift was out.  But Peeta himself had given her the answer at lunch.  She was going to replace the lucky coin that she was pretty sure she had made him lose years ago.  At least she hoped she was.  She had no idea if the machine even still existed, or how she’d get to said machine but she was determined to try. 

She knocked lightly on Effie’s door.  “Come in my dear Katniss,” Effie smiled.  “Welcome, welcome to my office.  How are you today?”  Katniss swallowed a giggled when Effie waved her hands dramatically.

“I’m great, Effie.  Just sore from practice.  I know it’s late so I won’t keep you, but I’m hoping you can help me with something.”

“Of course, dear, anything,” Effie sat up and pulled her notepad towards her.

“It’s not really show related.  But I owe my…er…friend from back home a favor and I need to replace their lucky charm that was lost.”

“Oh how sweet of you.  What is this charm? A four leaf clover? You know we produce those now.  Whole fields of them out in one of the districts.”

“No,” she said quickly.  “It was a coin that had been in one of those machines that flatten it out and print a scene on it.  From Yellowstone.”

“Yellowstone?  That’s not too far away.”

“I know.  I was hoping you might be able to help me get there.”

“I’m sure I can. I organize travel for the higher ups every day, you know.”

“I thought so,” Katniss nodded. “That’s why I thought you might be best to help me.”

“It’s a day trip if you take the hovercraft.  Let me make some calls tonight and see what I can do.  Perhaps Haymitch can help pull some strings.  He has lots of friends at the network.”

“Haymitch has friends?” Katniss asked before she could stop herself.

Effie tittered with laughter.  “Surprising isn’t it?  No no, Haymitch is such a sweet man once you get past the rough outer layer.”

“Stop telling the kid lies, Trinket,” Haymitch said as he entered the room.  He plopped a few files on her desk.

“Listening to other people’s conversation is bad manners, Haymitch,” she looked at him disapprovingly.  “But since you’re here do you think we could organize a trip to Yellowstone for Katniss?”

“Missing the trees, Sweetheart?” he eyed her.

“No…I have an errand there.  It’s important.”

He studied her while he considered.  “If you take Rye and a production crew with you to do some fluffy piece about how getting back to nature helps you dance I’ll get you the hovercraft.”

She made a face. “I didn’t really want Rye to know.”

“That’s the deal,” Haymitch shrugged.  “You don’t have to tell him about your little top secret errand.  We can just tell him we have an idea for your predance package.  He knows how the show works, he won’t question it.”

“Okay,” she nodded. “I guess that’s okay.  Thanks, Haymitch.  Thanks, Effie.”

“You’re welcome dear,” Effie smiled as she escorted her out.  She shut the door behind Katniss and turned back to Haymitch.

“You said yes to that much quicker than you usually do,” she said. “You have a plan.”

He laughed.  “I overheard them talking in the green room.  She’s going there for the boy.  She’s playing right into the star crossed lovers storyline and she doesn’t even know it.”


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here it is, finally. I had a bit of trouble getting in to this chapter, but it turned into an extra long one. Enjoy! 
> 
> Thanks to everyone who has followed, kudo-ed, and left comments. I love them!

Haymitch was true to his word.  Two days later Katniss found herself with Rye and a small crew in the middle of the woods.  Rye had led her through a few seconds of waltz steps under a canopy of trees.  Then she had spent an hour sitting against a tree trunk and answering a never ending list of questions posed by Cressida, the segment producer.  Katniss bounced her leg impatiently as Cressida went over her notes.  The hovercraft was coming to pick them up in a few hours and she hadn’t even begun to look for the coin machine.  She doubted seriously that Haymitch would let her borrow the hovercraft again.  She sighed.

Cressida looked up.  “I think that’s all I need.”  She smiled as Katniss stood quickly.  “Haymitch told me you have a little project while we’re here.”

“Uh yeah,” she nodded.

“He told me to help if I could.  I called ahead and found the locations of the machines that you’re looking for.” She held up a map of the park.  “We’ll leave Rye here with the boys to do his talking heads and we’ll go get your errand done, okay?  Haymitch said you didn’t want Rye to know.”

“Oh, he told you all of it…” she said. 

“Just that much,” she shrugged and stood up.  “Boys?” she called.  “Katniss and I are going to do some shots of her being ‘one with nature.’  Meet us back at the main entrance when you’re done here.”  She led Katniss over to one of the cars they’d been given for the day.  She sat up her camera on the dash facing Katniss.  “Haymitch said we need to film it,” Cressida shrugged at her questioning glance.  She looked down at the map.  “It says the nearest one is here,” she pointed. “You have your coin?”

Katniss pulled it out from under the strap of her sports bra and held it up.  Cressida raised an eyebrow.  “No pockets,” she shrugged.

“Got it,” Cressida smiled. “This must be some special friend for you to go to all this trouble.”

“He is,” she nodded. “Very special.”

“Boyfriend?” Cressida asked.

“No! No, just a friend.  More like an acquaintance, really.  Just a nice guy who I owe a favor.”

“Ah,” Cressida chuckled. “I see.”  Katniss nodded and chewed on her lip.  “Sure you don’t have a little crush?” she teased.

“He’d never want someone like me. Trust me.  I’m sure he has a million girls vying for his attention. He’s just so nice. Everyone likes him.”

“And cute?” Cressida smiled. “He must be cute.”

Katniss looked out the window.  “He is,” she nodded.  “I’ve always thought he was. Since we were little.”

“Oh, so this is someone from back home?” Cressida hid her smile.

Katniss looked over.  “Yes,” she nodded quickly and darted her eyes away quickly.  “There’s the yellow sign.  It should be just over that hill.”

Cressida pulled into a parking space of the overlook.  “There,” she pointed.  “I think that’s it.”

Katniss nodded and hopped out of the car.  She walked over to it slowly, crossing her fingers that it was actually operational.  She sighed when she realized that Cressida was following her with the camera, but didn’t comment.  She slid the coin into the machine and turned the crank.  Her face broke into a rarely seen grin when it went through.  “It worked!” she smiled broadly into the camera.  She held it up so Cressida could zoom in on it.  She then slid it back into her bra.  “For safe keeping,” she said, and practically skipped back to the car.  She was finally going to be able to pay Peeta back.  It had taken her years, but now she could finally hand this coin off to him and know that her debts were paid.  Then life could go back to normal and she could stop being such a spazz every time he wandered into her vicinity.   

Cressida shook her head and laughed.  She hadn’t been sure when Haymitch had first brought up the possibility of a star-crossed lovers storyline for Katniss and Peeta.  Katniss had seemed so stand offish for the first week of rehearsals, not at all the type to have a showmance or even a romance in real life.  But Haymitch had apparently witnessed some sort of spark between them early on and had reformulated the storyline for both of the couples.  Haymitch had a way of knowing things about people before they even knew it themselves.  Cressida had watched the pair’s interactions closely once it had been brought to her attention.  Peeta was very obviously smitten, and Katniss was adorably clueless.  She wasn’t supposed to play favorites, but she was really rooting for the two of them.  She pulled out her phone and texted Haymitch.  “Mission accomplished.”

***

It had finally arrived.  After long days of rehearsals, costume fittings, and interviews it was finally the night of the first live show.  Everyone was unusually quiet and you could cut the tension on the set with a knife.  Katniss was incredibly nervous, and it was made even worse by the fact that she and Rye were going first. She tried to shake the tension out of her hands as she paced back and forth around her dressing room.  Her hair had been artfully arranged in another intricate braid, and her face had been carefully made up to make her features pop on camera.  Cinna had once again created an amazing dress that might fool the audience into thinking she was sexy.  The top of the dress matched her skin tone perfectly and gave the allusion that she was covered in shades of red, orange, and yellow crystals.  From her hip waves of ruffles cascaded downward and created quite a sight when Rye spun her. 

Rye poked his head through the door.  “Ready?”

“No,” she said as she stood up and joined him in the hallway.  “I think I might puke.”

“If you puke on me, I’ll kill you,” he said.  “You’re going to be fine.  You’ve got this dance down to a science.  We just have to get through the intros, watch a little video, do the dance once, then you’re done for the night.”

“You forgot the part where I make a fool of myself in front of the entire nation and then get judged on it.  Can they give zeros? I’m going to get zeros.  Oh god.”

He grabbed her arm. “Katniss. Stop.  My god, we’ve got to get you laid so you stop being so uptight.”

She stopped short and smacked his arm. “Damnit, Rye.”

He laughed.  “That’s better.  It appears the way to make you stop freaking out is to say crass things to you.  I’ll keep that in mind.  Now come on.”  They joined the line of other couples ready to make their entrance.  She looked down the line and waved at Gale who looked rather charming in his tuxedo with the gorgeous Madge on his arm.  Tiny little Rue looked like a fairy princess in her costume, and Finnick was already missing his shirt.  Her eyes scanned to the other end of the line where Peeta appeared to be giving Delly a pep talk.  She sucked in a breath.  If Gale had looked charming, Peeta looked down right appealing.  His black suit had red trimmings that were the same fiery color as her dress.  He almost looked like he could jump into their chacha without a costume change. Odd.  She glanced over at Delly who was wearing a very pretty white gown.  Katniss wondered what their theme was briefly before Effie’s voice ripped her back to the present.

Before she knew it they had made their entrance and were standing in the middle of the dance floor waiting for their predance package to begin.  They looked up at the large screen as it flickered on.  It started off decent enough with talking heads from each of them introducing themselves, then a little bit about how she and Gale had known the Mellarks from back home.  There was a brief bit of footage that she hadn’t even realized was being filmed with the four of them sitting around a table in the green room laughing at something.  She was slightly mortified at the goopy smile that she saw herself giving Peeta, but all in all it wasn’t too bad.  She grimaced as the footage cut to their rehearsal room that first day when Rye was forcing her to move her hips.  Rye laughed and grabbed her hand to pull her into the starting position for their dance.  “Just me and you,” he said. 

She nodded and struck her pose.  She took a few deep breaths as she heard the music start.  She molded her face into the expression that Rye had spent an hour making her perfect in the mirror, and off they went.  Rye guided her pretty easily through the dance, and she only had one minor stumble in the middle.  It was over before she felt like they had even started, and she was standing with Caesar facing the judges.  Rye hugged her to his side.  “You did amazing!!” he whispered into her ear.  She smiled up at him then looked around the ballroom.  People were actually clapping and cheering.  She must not have done too horribly.

Caesar patted her shoulder.  “First one out of the gate!  That’s always tough, but I think you stepped up to the challenge.  Let’s see what our judges thought.  Portia?”

She concentrated on catching her breath as she turned her attention to the first judge.  The strikingly beautiful woman was beaming at her.  “Girl, that was great for your first time out.  You look amazing, and I can see the chemistry between you and Rye.  You’re a little reserved by nature I think, and that came through a little on the dance floor, so just work on that, work on your expressions, and don’t get inside your head.  But really great.” 

“We’ll work on that,” Rye nodded.  Caesar introduced the head judge, Plutarch Heavensbee, next. 

“That was bright, and fresh, and fiery, and I loved it.  Rye threw a lot of technique at you and it looks like you caught most of it.  You need to work on straightening your knees, but I’ll take it.”

“I agree with Plutarch,” Enobaria jumped in.  “You need to straighten your legs, and there was a little stumble in the middle.  The choreography could have been more interesting, but you did alright with what you were given.  Solid enough for week one, I suppose.”  Katniss didn’t dare look up at Rye, but she could practically hear him rolling his eyes.  Rye thought Enobaria was full of crap, and he had warned Katniss that since he wasn’t part of her “in crowd” that she wouldn’t be lavishing praise on them no matter how well they danced.

“And last but not least, Seneca?” Caesar leaned against the judges table.

Seneca smiled broadly under his intricately shaven beard.  “You were like a hot and sexy tigress on the prowl,” he said.  “Your hips did their job, and you lured Rye in with seduction.  I’d let you be my girl on fire any day,” he wiggled his eyebrows.  It took every ounce of Katniss’s power to keep the disgusted look off her face.  That guy was such a creeper.

“Smile,” Rye said, pinching her side.  She immediately pasted a smile on her face and waited until Caesar dismissed them.  She let Rye pull her back to the scoring room as she waved to the crowd.  She smiled into the camera as Rye called out their voting phone number as they waited for their scores.  She watched the tiny screen as the judges held up their paddles.  Seven.  Seven.  Six.  Seven.  Twenty-seven total.  She felt a massive sense of relief that she hadn’t actually scored a zero.  She threw her arms around Rye.  “See, I told you it wouldn’t be so bad,” he said.

“Bad? I want to do it again!” she laughing, feeling almost giddy.  Once the cameras turned off, several of the dancers rushed over to congratulate them. 

“Catnip!  You did so much better than I’m going to do, and I hate you,” Gale hugged her.  “I didn’t know you had that in you.”

She laughed.  “Me neither.  Don’t fall out there,” she smirked, as a producer pulled her and Rye away and settled them into seats where they’d watch the rest of the show.  Haymitch had pulled her aside earlier and told her to control her reactions as there would be a camera on them at all times.  The show would go gaga over her making a face at someone else’s dance and play it over and over again a thousand times until the entire country hated her.  She schooled her features and sat back to enjoy the rest of the show.  This was the first time she’d felt relaxed all day.

Just as she was letting her guard down, she spotted another blonde mop coming towards them.  Peeta grinned at them and slapped hands with Rye.  “Enobaria’s an idiot,” he said.  He looked at Katniss. “You looked really great out there, Katniss,” he said shyly. 

She felt her face heat up a little.  “Thanks, Peeta,” she peered up at him.  “I’m sure you and Delly are going to be great too.”

He shrugged. “She’s freaking out, big time.  She’s so nervous that I’m half expecting her to come up missing when it’s time for us to go on.”

“It’s really nerve wracking,” Katniss nodded. “I’m so glad we got it over with already.”

“Yeah, well, we’re last, so she has a lot of time to continue freaking out,” he sighed.

“She’ll be fine,” Rye said.  “She’s an actress.  She’ll at least be able to act like she’s not nervous.”  He looked between them.  “Why do you match Katniss better than I do?” He tugged at the trim on his brother’s jacket.

Peeta shrugged.  “I just wear what they give me,” he said.  “Just a coincidence I guess.”

“Well, you look like a couple,” Rye smirked.  “Maybe you should snuggle for the cameras and get some rumors started.

Katniss’s eyes widened and she froze in place.  She thanked all that was good and holy when Delly suddenly shouted Peeta’s name from the other side of the room.  Peeta tore his eyes away from the death glare that he had focused on Rye and glanced over.  “Duty calls,” he sighed.   He locked eyes with Katniss again and started to speak before giving up and waving glumly and heading to Delly.  Katniss crossed her arms and gave Rye her own death glare before turning back to the monitor to watch the other couples dance.

They were nearing the end of the show and luckily none of the stars had been that great.  Only one team had gotten a higher score than them.  When Finnick and Glimmer’s scores had been announced Rye had made a face and complained about Finnick just dragging a clueless Glimmer around the floor and Finnick being the judges’ favorite.  Katniss had had to tease him back into a good mood after that.  Several of the other couples were not very good including Thom who had trouble staying on the music, and Thresh who had two left feet.  Gale had fallen squarely in the middle of the pack with Mags and Rue.  He was luckily still in good spirits and not pouting about not being the best at something.  Madge really was chilling him out.  At long last it was Peeta and Delly’s turn, and she and Rye both turned their full attention to the screen.

Their video begin to play, and Katniss let herself enjoy being able to watch Peeta without consequences.  They did the usual talking head, and a little bit about Delly’s training and her nerves, and then cut to the two of them having some sort of heart to heart by the window of their studio.  Katniss got the distinct feeling that they had forgotten they had cameras on them.  Delly leaned into him on the screen.  “Let’s play a get to know you game,” she grinned.

He looked at her warily.  “Alright.”

She nodded happily.  “So, Peeta, you got a girlfriend?” she asked in a teasing voice.

His grin fell a bit and he looked sideways.  “No…not really.”

She slapped his leg.  “Seriously? You’re super cute.  You can’t be single.”

He shrugged.  “Well, there is this one girl.  I’ve had a crush on her forever.  But I don’t even think she even knew I was alive until the other night.  And probably then just as Rye’s little brother.  No one notices me when he’s around.”

“Well,” she smiled and tapped her finger on his knee.  “Yet another reason why we need to win this thing.  She’ll definitely notice you if you’re the mirror ball champion.”

“I don’t think winnings going to help me,” he shook his head.

“Why not?”

“If I win, then she loses.  And I’ve known her long enough to know that beating her isn’t going to win her heart.”

“Oooh no,” Delly said.  “It’s like Romeo and Juliette.  Star crossed lovers…only one can win.”  He shook his head with a laugh as he stood up and offered his hand to help her up. 

The video faded and Katniss felt her stomach drop.  He had a crush on someone.  Not that she cared or anything.  She was just curious, that’s all.  She glanced around the room full of scantily clad women, wondering which one had caught his eye.  She huffed out a breath when she realized that every single one of them was gorgeous. Rye glanced over and poked her.  “You’re supposed to be watching,” he said.  She turned her attention back to the floor and watched Peeta and Delly do a very pretty Viennese Waltz.  Peeta looked regal and handsome, and Delly was the perfect blonde princess beside him.  The judges loved the dance, and awarded them straight sevens.  They were tied for first.

Seconds after the cameras turned off, the room became a bustle as everyone was hurried back to their dressing rooms.  Katniss got caught up in a wave of people trying to make it to the hallway and reached her dressing room without having to speak to any of the camera people looking for talking heads.  She swiped a makeup remover over her eyes quickly so even if they tried to pull her back in for more interviews she wouldn’t be camera ready.  She slipped out of her dress and into a pair of sweats once she got her face clean.  She pulled out a few bobby pins then decided the rest of it would have to stay in until she could shower the three pounds of hairspray away.  As she slid on her slippers she caught sight of the small earring box she had stashed the Yellowstone coin in for safe keeping.  She bit her lip.  This would be an opportune time to take it to him, she reasoned.  She could hand it off to him without anyone else around just in case she said something embarrassing.  She did a quick check in the mirror to make sure she looked decent, then went down the hall in search of his room.  She finally found the door with his headshot at the very end of the hallway and knocked before she lost her nerve.

“Just a second,” she heard him call from inside the room.  He pulled the door open a moment later and she drew in a breath when she realized he was only wearing a pair of low slung sweatpants.  She had not thought this through.  Nudity was not part of the plan.  Naked Peeta in close quarters was not something she was equipped to handle.  She forced her eyes away from his very defined chest and up to his eyes.  Yet another mistake as she still hadn’t figured out how not to fall into the deep pools of blue.  “Katniss?” he asked, drawing her out of her mortified silence.  He looked surprised to see her she realized.  And of course he was.  It’s not like they were best friends who hung out in each other’s dressing rooms.

“Yeah, um hi,” she said, gripping the box to her stomach.  “Sorry.  I um…I have something for you.”  She looked down the hallway where a cameraman was turning the corner.  “Can I come in?” she blurted out quickly.  He looked startled.  Great. Now he thought she was insane. 

Peeta stepped back to allow her access and shut the door behind her.  His head was not processing fast enough.  Was she here because of that stupid conversation the producers had used for their clip?  Had she figured out he was talking about her?  Was she here to punch him for even thinking about her in that way?  Half his mind mused those questions while the other half jumped for joy that he was in the tiny room alone with her while she was wearing those sexy sweatpants and he was half naked.  He realized suddenly that he hadn’t spoken in far too many seconds, and also that he was standing there shirtless.  He tried to smile casually at her.  “You have something for me?” he asked as he slipped his tshirt back on.

She blinked a few times.  “Yeah.  It’s…yes.  I…I’m not sure if Rye told you, but they took us out to Yellowstone the other day so they could film us out in the woods.  And I remembered what you said about the coin you lost that day at school.  And we happened to walk past one of those machines.  And I thought I would replace it for you.  I mean, me being a spazz is what made you lose it in the first place,” she said quickly.  She shoved the box at him.

He took it and opened it slowly.  He pulled the coin out and studied it.  He couldn’t believe that she had actually taken the time to do this.  It was such a silly thing that he had blurted out, but she had remembered, and thought of him later. 

Katniss immediately felt silly when he didn’t say anything.  “It’s dumb.  I know it doesn’t replace the one your father got for you.  I just thought…well it was silly.”

“No!” he said forcefully.  “It’s not silly.  It’s the most thoughtful thing anyone has ever done for me,” he said softly.

“Oh…well…good.  I know it won’t be lucky like the one you had before…”

“Katniss, do you know why that penny was lucky?  My dad and I got it the day before Kindergarten started.  I was really shy and scared I wouldn’t make any friends, but he told me if I kept the penny with me that I was sure to have a lucky day.  So I put it in my pocket and held my dad’s hand as we went up to the school.  My dad pulled me to a stop and pointed to this tiny little girl in a red plaid dress and two braids and told me that he had almost married her mama but she had fallen in love with a coal miner.  I asked him why she’d marry a miner and not a baker and he said that even the birds stopped to listen when the miner sang.”

“It was true,” Katniss said softly. Her head was swimming.  She remembered that little red dress, but had no clue how he remembered it all these years later.  What did this even have to do with the coin?

He nodded. “That fascinated five year old me.  So later, in class, when the teacher asked who knew ‘The Valley Song’ I was so excited when you raised your hand.  I knew somehow that you would make the birds stop too.  And when you sang, and it happened, little five year old me was done for.  I decided right then that I was going to marry that little girl with the two braids someday.  It’s silly now, but I was so sure.  And at the end of the day when my dad walked me back to the bakery I told him all about it.  And he told me that my penny must really have worked because not that many people got lucky enough to meet their wives on the first day of school.  And I kept that penny in my pocket every single day until I lost it.”

“It was lucky because of me? But we hardly even spoke.”

“I know,” he nodded. “I realized quite quickly that I was too shy to talk to you and that you were too cool to even give me the time of day.  But I still thought the penny was lucky, and I felt weird when I tried to leave home without it.”

“Oh…” she said.

“I’ve weirded you out,” he chuckled.  “Don’t worry, I’m not a weirdo I swear. But I just wanted you to know why it means so much that you replaced it.”

She nodded.  She had no idea what to do with this overload of information.  Peeta Mellark had wanted to marry her.  Sure, he had been five and had long since grown out of the notion, but it was still there.  “You should get a chain,” she said suddenly.

“What?” he raised an eyebrow.

“If this one is lucky.  You should put it on a necklace so you won’t lose it.  Especially if I’m around to run into you and stuff,” she looked down with a grin.

He chuckled. “Do you anticipate running into me often, Everdeen?”

She lifted her head and met his eyes.  “Maybe I do.”

 

 


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys! Sorry again for the wait. Life has been insane. I think it's calmed down enough that I'll be able to post on a more regular basis, but just know I'm not abandoning this story. Thanks again for reading, and commenting. The comments really do motivate me!
> 
> So here's the new chapter. A little Finnick and Annie and a little Rye and Delly. Our main characters don't speak in this chapter, but I hope you like it anyway!

Cressida grabbed the cameraman’s arm when she saw Katniss standing at the door of what Cressida thought was Peeta’s dressing room.  “Quick!” she hissed.  “Get that on film.”  He nodded and clicked the camera on as they both tried to blend back into the wall.  Cressida didn’t blink as she watched the exchange.  “Step out…come on, show yourself…come on,” she muttered to herself.  She threw her arms in the air when shirtless Peeta came in to frame quickly before they both disappeared into his dressing room.  “What do you think that’s about?” she asked.

“Dunno,” the cameraman said.  “She was holding a little box though.”

“The penny I bet.  Damn, I was hoping we’d be able to catch that on film.”

“Why are you two huddling in an alcove?” Haymitch’s booming voice made them both jump. 

“We just caught Katniss going into Peeta’s dressing room.  She had a little gift box, and we think she’s giving him the penny.  We got a shot of both of them as they went in.”

“Excellent,” Haymitch said. “We’ve got to get this show on the road with them.  I’m getting tired of watching them make goopy eyes at each other.”

“Oh hush, Haymitch they’re sweet.”

“Uh huh,” he rolled his eyes.  “Stick here and try to get a shot of them when they come out.  Then you’ll have to devise a way to get a shot of him with the penny this week.  Hopefully he’ll make it easy, but be sneaky if necessary.  Now that we’ve put him in the Capital’s mind as a romantic lead, we’ll make next week about her getting the coin for him and weave in some mushy crap and we’ll be good to go.  The only thing left will be to make the boy admit he likes her, and then I figure we’ll have a hell of a time convincing Sweetheart he’s serious.  If we want to buy them time on the show they need to be a couple by episode four.  Snow is going to lose his patience sooner than later.”

Cressida nodded.  “Got it.  We’ll camp here til they come back out.  And I’ll recruit Delly and Rye to help us get this show on the road this week.”

Haymitch chuckled.  “I’m sure Rye will be more than happy to help you as long as you promise some embarrassment along the way.”  Haymitch had no idea how right he was.  Rye was more than ready for his brother to man up and he figured that if Katniss got a boyfriend she might be a little less uptight.  Two birds with one stone as far he was concerned.  So when Cressida pulled him aside with the disguise of discussing his earlier interview, he was happy to have a partner in crime.  Of course he knew the show had ulterior motives, but if the outcome was the same he didn’t think Peeta would mind too much.  He’d do whatever he needed to do to help them get together. And then he’d probably try to find his own place, because the thought of hearing the two of them through his bedroom wall was enough to give him the willies.

\--

Peeta clasped his shiny new penny in his hand as he made his way to the costume shop.  He knew he couldn’t even chance losing this coin. Not when the girl of his dreams had noticed him and given him a really sweet gift.  He was very much used to being the thoughtful one in all of his doomed relationships, so to have someone do something so thoughtful made him a little giddy.  He knew she had just done it to be kind, but he couldn’t keep a small part of himself from hoping a little that it was a grand romantic gesture.  He hadn’t been able to sleep the night before as replayed the encounter over and over.  Katniss’s little shorts had become the star of his dreams.  He felt a little guilty having her in his fantasies, but he had finally given in a three in the morning and imagined her as he’d gotten himself off. He shook his head to clear thoughts of those dreams before he needed to sneak into a shower to relieve the pressure again.

He had decided at some point during his rather sleepless night that he’d ask Cinna to help him with a chain since he had no idea where to get one or how to get the penny onto the chain.  A nail gun didn’t seem like it was probably the best solution.  He walked into Cinna’s office, and saw Finnick and Annie trying on sparkly rhumba costumes.  “Hey guys,” he smiled.  “Hey Cinna.”

 They all smiled at him and Annie ran over to kiss his cheek.  “Hey Blondie,” she ruffled his hair.  “We’ve barely seem you around lately.”

“That’s cause he spends all his time watching his brother’s partner with hearts in his eyes,” Finnick grinned as he came over and gave Peeta a man hug.

“I do not!” he said.  “I’ve just been busy with Delly.  And I’m in basically all the pro numbers,” he said as he felt his face heating up.

Annie looked at Finnick and winked.  “Give it up, Mellark.  You have the hots for her.  You admitted it in the footage they played on the last show.”

“I did not,” he said. “I said I might have a dumb crush on someone.  I never named names.”

Finnick held up his hand and started ticking the women off.  “Not Delly since she’s your partner, Mags is way too old, and Rue is way too young. It better not be Annie cause I’d kill you, Jo terrifies you, and Madge is like your sister.  That leaves Clove, Cashmere, Glimmer, and Katniss. We’ll eliminate the first three for kicks because, did I mention, you look at Katniss like a lovesick puppy dog?”

Peeta’s shoulders slumped.  “Don’t,” Annie said, reaching out and touching his arm.  “It’s adorable.  And I think the only person more oblivious about this than you is Katniss herself.”

“And it’s going to stay that way,” he said. “Because she’s about five hundred miles out of my league.”

“Well that’s not true,” Cinna said.  “You’d be a gorgeous couple.”

Peeta shrugged. “Do you have any chain, Cinna?  I have this thing that I want to make into a necklace,” he said as he opened his palm.

Cinna glanced down.  “Hmm, let me see what I can find.”  He pulled a drawer out and dug around until he came up with a length of chain.  “I think this will work.”  He pulled out a couple of tools and took the penny from him.  In less than five minutes Cinna had the coin on the chain and the chain fitted for length on Peeta’s neck.  He studied him.  “You should consider talking to her,” he said softly.  “She’s tough, but very shy.  She won’t make any kind of first move. And you’ll never know unless you try.”

Peeta nodded thoughtfully.  “Thanks.  I’ll think about it.”

“What is that anyway?” Finnick asked, pointing at the necklace.

“It’s just my lucky penny,” he shrugged.  “I just don’t want to lose it.”

Finnick pursed his lips and shared a look with his wife.  “He’s not telling the whole story is he, babe?”

Anna pretended to stroke her imaginary beard as she studied him. “I think not, babe.”

Peeta waved goodbye quickly. “See you later, gotta go, bye!” he said as he swept out of the room as quickly as his feet could carry him. He wasn’t about to give them any sort of chance to grill him with questions. He debated about going down to his brother’s studio to watch Katniss train, but decided against it, when he remembered how obvious he must have been being if everyone on the show knew so much about his life.   He needed to hang out with some other people until he could get his apparently goopy eyes under control.  He’d keep his distance for a bit.  At least until he got up the nerve to ask her out.  He just needed a couple of days to gather his courage and prepare himself for the disappointment that he was sure would come from the confession.

He wandered around for a bit looking for someone to hang out with.  For once the place was empty and he almost gave up before finding Cashmere and Glimmer having a coffee in the green room. Not his first choice of new friends, but it would have to do for today.  “Hello, ladies,” he flashed his megawatt tv smile.  “Can I join you?” he asked charmingly. 

Glimmer glanced at Cashmere, then nodded with a giggle.  “Of course you can. Grab a chair.”  He fixed himself a cup of tea before joining them at the table.  They chatted for a while, and he silently cursed himself for being able to charm the pants off any lady other than the one he wanted.  Glimmer was eating out of his hand and he wasn’t even trying.  He was actually amused at how hard she was flirting with him.  She was batting her lashes like it was her job, and giving him little touches and giggles.  He wouldn’t encourage her, but he decided there was nothing wrong with enjoying the attention a little bit. He refilled his tea cup, and settled in for a chat.

\--

Katniss glanced around as she walked back to the studio after a break from rehearsal.  She hadn’t seen Peeta all day.  She knew it was silly, but she had hoped to see if he had the penny with him.  Not that she expected him to make a big deal of it or anything.  But he’d seemed happy.  And she finally felt like they were even.  Things should be normal now.  They could maybe be friends.  She sighed when she didn’t see him, and went back into the studio.

“Why are you making that face?” Rye asked as he cued up the music.

‘I’m not making a face,” she protested.

He mimicked her face back to her.  “You look like someone peed in your coffee.”

“I was just thinking,” she said. 

“Bout what?” Rye asked.

“Nothing,” she said quickly. 

“Of should I ask about who?” Rye asked with a mischievous grin.

“Rye,” she said warningly. 

He held up his hands in mock surrender.  “Fine.  I need to talk to you about something anyway.”

“Okay,” she said warily.

“So you know Delly right?”

“Uh huh,” she nodded.

“Well, I think she’s super hot.  And I’m pretty sure she’s into me.” 

She raised an eyebrow.  “She hasn’t said anything about it to me.”

“So? Of course she’s into me.  Everyone is,” he grinned smugly.

“I’m not,” she scoffed.

“Well, there’s no accounting for taste, Everdeen.” 

She rolled her eyes at him.  “Your point, Rye?”

“Well, I was talking to her while you were being lazy on your break and we thought it would be fun if we all rehearsed together tomorrow.  Do some run-throughs in front of them, and get some feedback.  I think it’ll help her with her nerves.”

“What about my nerves?” She was one hundred percent sure that dancing with Peeta’s eyes trained on her would do the exact opposite of calming her nerves.

“Well, yours too, I guess.  But I’m not trying to sleep with you so…” he shrugged.

“Rye! We’re trying to win a competition against them!”

“We’re still going to win, Katniss,” he brushed her off.  “I just don’t see any problem with me also getting laid in the process.”

“Pig,” she made a face.

“Uh huh,” he grinned.  “Now that that’s settled-“

“I didn’t say yes!”

He ignored her.  “Now that that’s settled, let rehearse.” 

“Fine,” she grumbled and pulled back on her long rehearsal skirt.

“You’ve got the steps down, but now we have to tackle the hard part,” he studied her.

“What’s the hard part?”

“Turning you into more of a graceful princess than a manly woodsman.”

“I am not manly!”

“Katniss…you’re gorgeous, and I love you, but you have to admit you’re more comfortable stomping around in boots with a bow and arrow than in heels and chiffon.”

“That’s true.  But I’m not manly.  You said I was sexy last week.”

“You were.  But this week you have to be soft and beautiful.”

“Well good luck,” she grumbled.  “Since I’m such a man.”

“Stop pouting.  Start thinking about each move you make.  Don’t just stick your arm out into the air, extend it all the way to your fingertips,” he demonstrated.  “And I know it will be hard for you, but you need to concentrate on having a pleasant look on your face.”  She glared at him.  “Yeah, I wouldn’t call that pleasant.”

“Shut up, Rye.”

“No, the judges said we had to work on your expression.” He went and sat in the front of the room.  “I want you to do the opening step and each time I’m going to give you a different emotion to show.”  She shrugged and did the step with what she hoped was a happy look on her face.  “No! Go back,” he yelled.  “Think of something that makes you happy, and do it again.”  She repeated the step a few times before he yelled again.  “Excited!” then “sad!” and “conflicted.”  He watched and then sighed.  “How can all four of those emotions look exactly the same?”

“I don’t know,” she put her hands on her hips.  “You’re the teacher.”

“God,” he scoffed.  “Okay, fine.  We’re going to have to pick one and stick with it. The song is about falling in love.  So you need to look like you’re in love, okay?”

“How do I do that?!”

He looked at his watch.  “I don’t even have time to begin to teach you that today.  Your homework is to think about your first boyfriend or your first crush.  Remember how pure and simple that love was.  That’s the look that we need to portray.  You need to practice in the mirror tonight, and show up here with something other than an uncomfortable blank stare tomorrow, got it?”

Katniss looked at him skeptically.  “Okay, I guess.”

“I’ll let you go early so you have plenty of time to practice.” He shooed her towards the door.

“Why do I feel like you’re probably making me leave early so you can go scam on poor Delly some more?”

“Cause you’re a smart one, Katniss. Now, go away.”

She rolled her eyes. “Fine.  Bye Rye, I’ll see you tomorrow.” 

Rye peaked out the door and made sure Katniss was out of sight before he snuck down the hall to Cressida’s office where she and Delly were waiting. “Operation Peenis in full effect!” he announced as he shut the door behind him.

“Rye!  They aren’t Peenis, they’re Everlark!” Delly laughed.

“Really? But Peenis sounds so much better,” he said, looking at Cressida. 

“Sorry, Rye.  Everlark is more tv friendly.”

“Well, I’m still going to call them Peenis in person,” he crossed his arms.

Delly rolled her eyes.  “She said okay to the rehearsal?”

“Of course she did.  She thinks I’m trying to get into your pants, so she didn’t really question it.”

“Rye!”

“What?” he wiggled his eyebrows?  “I can have ulterior motives and still care about getting my brother laid. 

“You wanna get in my pants?” she batted her eyelashes at him.

“Ugh, guys,” Cressida said.  “Just tell me you’re all on board with rehearsal tomorrow then you can go get into each other’s pants anywhere that isn’t my office. Okay?”

They nodded. “We’re in,” Rye said.

\--

Katniss headed towards her dressing room, and realized that she still had some time to kill before Gale would be done and ready to drive her home.  She flopped down into her chair and looked in the mirror.  She made a face at herself.  She decided she might as well work on her assignment.  She smiled brightly at the mirror then made another face.  “Ugh,” she sighed.  “Okay, love. How do you look in love?” she raised an eyebrow.  She put her chin on her hands and tried to think about love.  She had no idea.  She’d never had a boyfriend, she’d never even been on a real date.  Unless you counted Darius buying her stew that one time.  She didn’t.  People who were in love always made moony eyes at each other. She blinked when a certain set of blue eyes popped into her mind. Why was she thinking about Peeta again? She certainly wasn’t in love with him.  Even if he did have an amazing chest.  And ass.  And smile.  And even if he was sweet and funny and nice.  And sexy.  She looked up at the mirror and was surprised to see a moony look in her own eyes.  She realized it then.  She had no idea how it happened.  It wasn’t supposed to happen.  She had somehow redeveloped her crazy high school crush on Peeta.  Oh crap.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So sorry for the long wait! Life has been insane. Hopefully you like it! Let me know your thoughts in the comment section :)

Katniss walked into the costume shop early the next morning.  She moved past the racks of dresses and tables of rhinestones to reach Cinna’s office.  She tapped lightly on the door.  He pulled it open.  “Katniss! How are you?” he hugged her.  “We didn’t have a fitting I forgot about did we?”

“No…no. I came to visit.  And to ask a favor.”

“Ah,” he nodded.  “What’s up?”

“Rye and I are rehearsing with Peeta and Delly today.  Supposedly to help Delly with her nerves.  But mostly so Rye can spend the day flirting with her.”

He chuckled.  “Yes, that does sound like Rye.”

She nodded. “And I know that they’ll show a lot of it on tv.  And I’ve already worn all those practice outfits you gave me a few times.  So I was wondering if you had anything else. So I can look good,” she paused. “You know…for tv.”

He studied her.  “Of course. Look at you lucky girl, both Mellark boys in one studio.”

She blushed.  “Yeah, I guess,” she said nonchalantly.

“Okay, come on.  I think I can dig something up.”

She smiled gratefully.  “Thank you.  Delly’s so gorgeous, I don’t want to look like her twelve year old cousin.”

“You’re gorgeous,” he said.  “And you certainly don’t look twelve.”

“Yeah right.  When I stand with the three of them with all that blonde hair and three sets of big blue eyes I look like the Ugly Duckling.”

“Oh hush,” he said.  “I have the perfect thing.  Go try this on.”  He handed her a pair of pastel watercolor leggings and a soft orange tank top.  She slid into the changing booth to put it on.  “Perfect,” he said when she came back out.  “He’ll love it.”

Katniss looked up quickly.  “Who will?”

“The man you want to look good for.”

“There’s no man,” she protested weakly.

“Okay,” he nodded easily.  “But I promise he’ll love it anyway.”  She shrugged.  “I never got to tell you how amazing you were last week.”

“Oh…thanks.  I don’t think I was amazing.”

“You were.  I’m pretty sure you’re going to make it far in the competition.”

“Really?”

He nodded.  “I’m not allowed to bet, but if I was I’d be betting on you.”

She hugged him.  “Thanks, Cinna.”

He nodded. “Anytime, Girl on Fire.  Now go practice so you don’t prove me wrong.”

She smiled. “Yeah yeah.  I’ll see you later.”  She dumped her things off in her dressing room and nervously checked her reflection in the mirror and redid her braid three times before she shrugged at herself and went down the hall to the studio.  She was the first to arrive so she moved to the middle of the floor to walk through their waltz.  Katniss knew her nerves would probably make her fall on her face or do something else stupid when Peeta watched their dance, so she at least wanted to make sure she had the steps down. 

“That’ll be easier for you if you push forward first before moving backwards,” a voice boomed into the studio.

Katniss jumped and spun around.  She put her hand on her heart and scowled at the beautiful boy who had startled her. “Jesus, Peeta.  You scared me.”

He held his hands up with a grin.  “I’m sorry.”  He moved towards her.  “If you use your toe to push forward,” he demonstrated, “you’ll have the momentum to go backwards.”  She studied him with a raised eyebrow.  “Go ahead,” he laughed. “Try it.”  She nodded hesitantly then tried it.  “Good!” he said.   He nodded with a grin.  “May I lead you into it?” he held up his arm.

Katniss hesitated again then nodded. Being in frame with Peeta Mellark was not where she thought she was going to be today.  But she couldn’t say no.  And she had to admit that the idea of pressing her body against his wasn’t all that unattractive  “Okay.”  She moved closer to him and took his hand. 

Peeta pulled her into position.  “Didn’t my brother teach you proper frame?” he tsked.  He gently pushed and pulled until they were connected from the chest to the knee.  “Now tilt here…think of your head as the olive on the martini glass.  Good…good. This is how you should always feel when you’re in frame.  Do you feel the difference?”

Katniss could most certainly feel the difference.  She could feel every plane of his body smack up against hers and his leg in between her legs.  “Ohh yeah,” Katniss said before she could stop herself.  She blushed. “I mean yeah. Yeah.  We’re like a puzzle.  All our parts fit together really well.”  She blushed again. ‘ Jesus, Katniss,’ she thought.  ‘Our parts fit together well?!’

To Peeta’s credit, he didn’t react outwardly to her comment.  His head may have shot off into a dirty place momentarily, but he didn’t let it show.  He simply nodded.  “I’m a little shorter than my brother.  Probably a better height for you.  Ready?”  She nodded and he set them into the motion of the step.  “Again,” he said.  “Perfect.”  He led her into a different step and felt her tense up. “Relax,” he whispered.  “Just dance.”  She nodded and he let himself get lost in the feel of her in his arms as he led her around the floor. 

“What’s this?!” his brother’s annoyingly loud voice broke through their quiet moment.  “Are you trying to steal my partner, Peeta Bread?”  Katniss jumped away from Peeta as if they had been doing something to feel guilty about.  He immediately felt the loss of her softness in his arms.  He cursed his brother silently.

“Not trying to steal her. Just trying to teach her some proper technique since you didn’t bother.”

“I bothered,” he grumbled as he tossed his things down.  “I bet <i>you</i> didn’t bother to stretch your injured back before you started hauling my partner around the room.”  Rye nudged Peeta down to the floor and grabbed his leg to stretch his back.  He looked up at Katniss.  “If something is wrong with him, I’m somehow responsible.  If he gets hurt, I get bitched at because I was supposed to be looking after him or something.  Just wait til I tell Papa that you aren’t taking care of yourself.  You’re gonna be in trouble.”

“Just wait til I tell Papa that you were twenty minutes late to rehearsal. You’ll see what trouble is then.”

Katniss giggled as Rye made a face.  “End result is more important,” he let Peeta’s leg drop to the floor. 

“End result,” Peeta rolled his eyes and eyed his brother’s attire.  “You look like a gondola driver.”

Rye ignored him.  “That was the best I’ve seen you do that, so don’t forget what he told you.  He’s not much to look at but he is a world champ.”

“I won’t forget.  He explained it in a way that made more sense than what you said.”

Rye dramatically flopped on the floor.  “See, I knew you were turning her against me!”

Peeta rolled his eyes as Delly walked in.  “Morning guys,” she yawned.  “Hey Hot Stuff,” she nudged Rye with her foot.

He sprang to his feet.  “Hello, Beautiful,” he grinned.  “Are you ready to dance?”

“Always.  Sorry I’m late,” she winked at him.  The others didn’t need to know that they had kept themselves occupied in the hallway to let Peeta and Katniss have some alone time.  She gave Katniss air kisses.  “You look gorgeous, sweetie.  That shirt is Peeta’s favorite color.”  She swept away before Katniss had time to answer.  She hugged Peeta. “Did you see her shirt? Isn’t it pretty?” 

“I saw it,” he nodded. “She looks like a sunset.”  Of course he had noticed.  Not only the color, but the way her boobs looked in it too.

“You two go first,” Delly said to Rye and Katniss.  “We’ll watch.”  She pulled Peeta to the chairs in the front of the room. 

Rye got the music cued up and pulled Katniss to their starting positions.  He pulled her into frame.  “Oh, yes!  Look at that posture!  Thanks Peet,” he gave his brother a thumbs up.  “Remind me to return the hands on tutoring favor to your partner soon.”

  They ran through their dance with Delly cheering them on and Peeta occasionally calling out for her to point her toes or remember her frame. She felt his eyes following her, and the hair on the back of her neck stood up.  She knew he was just watching to give feedback on the dance, but she found that she was enjoying having his eyes on her.  Rye spun her to a stop in front of their small audience.

“That was soooo good!” Delly cried.  “You’re such an amazing choreographer, Rye.  And dancer.” 

Katniss caught Peeta’s eye as Delly fawned over Rye and made a gagging face.  He chuckled.  The noise caught Rye’s ear and he looked at Peeta.  “Okay, baby brother, spill.  I know that look.  You have something to say.”

“It was good,” Peeta said.  “You look good together, and all the steps are there.  But you aren’t selling me on a love story.”

Rye nodded.  “We’ve been working on her expression.”

Peeta nodded and looked at Katniss.  “I can already see a big improvement, so keep going with that.  But Rye, you can add in some things that will help sell it. At the beginning I think you should start in an embrace to set the mood.” 

“Yeah?” Rye threw a look at Delly.  This match making stuff was a piece of cake. “Show me what you mean.” 

Peeta nodded and closed the distance to Katniss in a few steps. He pulled her into his arms and into an embrace.  “You should tuck your head into my chest.  Melt into me,” he prompted.  Katniss’s breath hitched as she nodded slowly, and did as he said. Being in his arms felt really good.  She had to stop herself from snuggling in.

 “Then,” he said as he let her go, “as you break frame to go to the ending you should gently stroke your hand over her cheek as if you can’t bear to be leaving her.”  He ran his hand over her cheek softly, as she looked up with him with wide eyes filled with swirling gray.  He pulled her into the final pose of the dance.  “And then at the end when you dip her, you should almost kiss.”  The last words came out as a whisper as he lowered his face inches from her’s.  He knew he was pushing it, but the look she was giving him wasn’t going to let him stop.

Katniss’s heart was beating a mile a minute, and she was pretty sure she was going to die right there in the middle of the studio.  Peeta Frickin Mellark was mere centimeters away from kissing her.  His big blue eyes had turned a slightly darker shade than normal, and looked down at her with an expression she couldn’t quite place.  She was insanely glad that he was strong and holding her up, because her legs had turned to jelly.  Her eyes fluttered closed without her consent as she felt Peeta’s lips gently on her own.

Then suddenly it was over.  Katniss was back on her feet, and Peeta was steps away blushing furiously. She looked over at Rye who was looking back and forth between them with a smirk, and felt her own cheeks heat up.  She felt so stupid.  Peeta was just demonstrating a move, and there she was acting like a sex starved housewife.  He probably thought she was pathetic.  It had just seemed so real for a moment.  Like he had really wanted to kiss her. Stupid, Katniss.  Just because she had a middle school crush, didn’t mean that every time he got near her he wanted to kiss her.  She needed to get out of the studio.  She needed to run and to hide.  “I left my water bottle in my dressing room,” she announced quickly.  “Let’s take a fifteen.”  She darted out of the studio before anyone had the chance to protest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The conversation between the brothers about their papa is based closely on a hilarious conversation between Maks and Val from DWTS who Rye and Peeta are very loosely based on. I couldn't resist. Here's the link if you're interested. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3pCm5z_Y4Rw


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's the next chapter. Sorry for disappearing for a little while. But I'm back now and I promise you won't have to wait months for the next update.

Peeta looked blankly over at Rye and Delly. He cringed when he saw their smirking faces. He couldn’t believe he just did that. He had let himself go too far, and was one hundred percent sure he had creeped her out. He had kissed her. Granted it was barely a peck, but still. What an idiotic and unprofessional thing to do. He wouldn’t be surprised if she was going to Haymitch and refusing to rehearse with him anymore. Just because he had a crush on her didn’t mean that he could act like a horndog.

“Way to go, Peet,” Rye slow clapped. “Did you plan that?”  


“No!” he blushed deeply. “It was an accident. I…I lost balance or something.”  


“Mmmhmm,” Delly grinned. “That was sooo romantic!” she clasped her hands by her face. “You two are beautiful together. Swoon worthy.”  


He rolled his eyes. “We aren’t together Delly. She’s probably not even going to speak with me after that. I’m going to take my fifteen.”  


Delly rolled her eyes at Rye as Peeta walked out. “This is going to be harder than I thought.”  


*  


“Wait…they kissed?!” Annie squealed as she sat up from her place sprawled on the couch with her head in Finnick’s lap. “Seriously?”  


Rye nodded as he flopped on a couch across the room. “He was helping us in rehearsal and he took her into this deep dip and then they were, like, gazing into each other’s eyes and then he kissed her.”  


“No way!”  


He nodded. “It wasn’t a very good kiss. No tongue action or anything. And she ran screaming from the room afterwards.”  


“She did not!” Delly laughed. “They both turned beet red, and she called for a water break. When she came back they both played it off as if nothing had happened. Which was highly disappointing.”  


“Yeah,” Annie frowned. “But…it’s a step in the right direction at least?”  


“A teensy tiny baby step,” Delly said. “At this rate we’re going to be here all year trying to make this work.”  


“Make what work?” Madge asked as she and Gale came into the breakroom.  


“Peenis,” Rye said.  


Gale choked on the sip of water he had just taken. “Excuse me?”  


“Peenis,” Rye said again.  


“Penis? You mean you don’t know how that works yet, Townie?”  


“I know more than you’ll learn in a lifetime, Hawthorne,” he glared at him. “I was talking about my baby brother and your grumpy friend. Peeta and Katniss equal Peenis.”  


“Not Peenis,” Delly said. “Everlark.”  


“Oooh, much prettier,” Madge nodded.  


“Oh them,” Gale said. “Yeah, your brother needs to make a move already.”  


“He kissed her today!” Annie clapped. “But then they pretended it didn’t happen.”  


“He kissed her?”  


“Yup. And they got it all on video,” Rye nodded.  


“I can’t wait to see it,” Madge giggled. “How long are we going to give them to figure it out before we interfere?”  


“The producers are already interfering,” Rye said. “But if it doesn’t happen soon, we’ll have to make our own plan.”  


“Ugh,” Gale sighed. “I better go. She’s going to be in a horrible mood and she’s going to take it out on me. Townie, talk some sense into your brother. I love Catnip like a sister, but he needs to hurry up and take her off my hands. I’m getting stuck with all the boyfriend duties with none of the sex.” They all laughed as he stomped out glumly.  


*  


Katniss adjusted the strap of her costume and looked at the clock. She had five minutes until showtime. She couldn’t believe that it was already time for the next live show. At least this time they didn’t have to go first. She looked down at herself and knew that if nothing else she looked good. Cinna had taken inspiration from their trip to Yellowstone and created a beautiful gown in swirls of greens, and sparkling stones that looked like dew. It was her favorite dress so far, and it helped calm her nerves if she imagined she was in her woods and not about to be on the chopping block in front of the entire county.  


Rye poked his head into the room. “Ready?”  


She nodded and let him lead her out of the hall and into the Red Room. She wasn’t ready at all. Someone was going home tonight. And as nervous as she was she desperately didn’t want it to be her. She was having fun for the first time in ages. And even if Peeta made her live in a perpetual state of embarrassment she still liked being there. The fact that it could all be over in another two hours made the feeling in the pit of her stomach even worse.  


“Get out of your head, Everdeen,” Rye muttered.  


She rolled her eyes but nodded. She hated that he knew her so well. “Where are we supposed to sit?”  


“Over here,” he said. They got settled in their places and looked around the room. “Delly looks hot,” he said. “Thank yoooou, Cinna.” Katniss rolled her eyes again but looked over. She did look great. Her eyes were drawn from Delly to the man who was bent over helping her with her shoe. More specifically the very nice butt of said man. She blushed. “See something you like, Everdeen?” Rye grinned and wiggled his eyebrows at her.  


“Shut up, asshat,” she said and looked away as she pretended not to be flustered. “The show is starting.” She ignored his chuckle and turned her attention to the dance floor. She watched Rue and Marvel do a rather strange version of a jive where they were jungle animals, and then Thom and Cashmere do an awkward waltz.  


Rye pulled her up as Gale and Madge’s package started. “We’re next. Ready?” She nodded and they moved to the holding area. She shook out her limbs and listened as Rye gave her last minute reminders. “You know this dance backwards and forwards so really concentrate on emoting okay? Pretend I’m whoever you want and love me for the next 2 minutes okay?”  


She nodded. “I’ll try.” She looked up at the big screen and watched herself being interviewed out in the forest. That day felt so long ago now that she hardly remembered what she’d said. She winced a little as she saw herself pull the penny out of her bra. “Oh crap,” she muttered.  


Rye turned his attention up to the screen. He watched her explain about the penny then turned back to her with a smirk. “Let me rephrase my previous statement. Pretend I’m my brother.” She didn’t have time to answer before he pulled her to the center of the floor. She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and leaned in to Rye. If she didn’t think too much, maybe she could pretend he was Peeta. She let herself get lost in the music and Rye and before she knew it he was dipping her into the ending pose. Once the music stopped her helped her up and pulled her into a congratulatory hug. “Thanks for not kissing me,” he grinned evilly and pulled her over to the judges table.  


“That was beautiful,” Caesar said. “Let’s let you catch your breath and see what the judges have to say. Plutarch what’d you think?”  


“My girl, you are getting very good.” She let out a sigh of relief. “I think Rye is having fun putting together some tough routines for you. Your frame was good, but there were a few minutes when it went a bit wonky. So just work on that for next time.”  


Enobaria nodded. “Well, it was better than last week. It looks like going out on location helped you a bit. I don’t think you’ve quite found your inner dancer, but you’re making progress. Keep working.”  


Seneca fanned himself. “Goodness, that was hot!” he said and the crowd cheered. “Your chemistry is great. You’re becoming this beautiful dancer. I couldn’t have asked for more for week two.”  


Portia grinned at them. “You took to heart my comments from last week. I can tell you spent a lot of time working on your expressions.”  


“A LOT of time,” Rye nodded. “And I think she found some inspiration from penny guy, whoever he is.” Katniss scowled up at him and elbowed him in the ribs.  


Portia laughed and continued. “Well, whatever it is, it’s working. So much better. I think you really got lost in the dance. I can't wait to see what you do next week, because I’m sure you’re not going home tonight.”  


Katniss’s face broke out into a huge grin. Rye laughed. “Come on, Champ,” he pulled her to the Red Room to wait for their scores. They watched the screen. Eight. Eight. Eight. Eight. Rye let out a yelp and swung her into a hug. She grinned widely.  


“Congratulations, that’s the highest score of the night so far,” Caesar announced. “When we come back Delly and Peeta do a jive for you. You won’t want to miss it!”  


Katniss basked in the glow of success as everyone congratulated her. She and Rye got back to their seats just as the show went back on air. She turned to the screen to watch Delly’s predance package. She felt her stomach drop when the camera zoomed in on Peeta. They stilled on a close-up of him and the penny that was resting on his chest. It was only a couple of seconds, but long enough for even the slowest of audience members to connect the dots. She hadn’t known she could feel both mortified and ecstatic at the same time. She hated that the entire country knew her business, but she was thrilled to see the penny around his neck.  
The rest of the dancing was nothing more than a blur to her. She was back in her dressing room before it had even sunk in that they had been called safe for the week. She felt so sorry for Thom being the first to go, but he had been a great sport about it. She knew she wouldn’t have been so gracious. But none of that mattered because they were safe.  


*  


Peeta yawned as he stumbled in to the kitchen the next morning. “Well, look who it is,” Rye said. “The Star Crossed Lover of Star Dance Challenge!”  


“Huh?” Peeta scratched his stomach as he poured himself a cup of coffee. Rye thrust a paper under his nose. He took it and sat down at the table. “What is this?”  


“This morning’s paper, hot of the presses.”  


He looked down at it. There was a huge picture himself and Katniss from last night’s show. He didn’t even know when the picture had been taken. He was a little embarrassed by the wistful look they had captured on his face, but Katniss looked radiant. “Star Dance Challenge’s Star Crossed Lovers,” he read. “Everyone is falling in love with this adorable couple to be. But will the competition get in the way of true love?” He made a face at Rye.  


Rye laughed. “Good job, Peeta Bread. You just secured us both a place in the finals!”


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for all your kind words and kudos. Your comments really motivate me to write. Here's the next chapter for you.

Katniss slid into the chair across from Haymitch’s desk uneasily. She had no idea why she had been called in early the day after a show. She had convinced herself that there had been a miscalculation and she was actually been the one who was supposed to go home. She was planning how she’d break the news to Rye when Haymitch finally arrived and flopped into his desk chair. “Morning, Sweetheart.”  


She made a face at him. “Good morning.”  


He chuckled. “Pleasant as always I see,” he said.  


“Why am I here, Haymitch,” she said shortly.  


“Geez,” he muttered. “I’m trying to help you Sweetheart. The least you could do is be nice to me.” She just scowled at him. “Fine,” he said. “I wanted to talk to you about your Most Memorable Year. Obviously you’re going to talk about your sister and the song and all.”

“I told you I don’t want to talk about that,” she said stiffly.  


Haymitch held up a hand. “I know that. But you have to. What else are you going to talk about? The year you almost starved to death in the Seam?” She crossed her arms and glared at him. “Look, I know it’s hard for you to show emotion. And I’ve spoken to Cressida and she’s going to make it as easy as possible for you in your interviews. But you’re going to have to open up. Let the audience see you’re a real person.”  


Katniss slumped in her seat. “I hate this,” she grumbled.  


He pulled out the paper with the Star Crossed Lovers headline. “Peeta has done you a favor here.”  


She groaned. “That makes me look silly.”  


“It makes you look desirable. Which in your case can’t hurt, Sweetheart. I can sell ‘The Star Crossed Lovers of District 12”…”  


“We are NOT star crossed lovers!” she protested.  


He let out a frustrated sigh. “It’s a television show. And being in love with that boy might just get you votes which keeps your butt on the show. But it’s not enough. For the audience to fall in love with the couple, they have to fall in love with you. So we have to throw them a bone.”  


Katniss sighed. “Whatever.”  


“I’ll take that as cooperation,” Haymitch said. “Now, you don’t have to get too heavy. Talk about your relationship and how you took care of her. Then we’ll gloss over the accident and all that. Then you can talk about the reasons you miss her, and how this was her favorite show, yada yada yada. Talk about how you wrote the song for her and the craziness from that. We’ll try to keep it as shallow as we can, okay?” She nodded. “The plan is for you to dance to your song.”  


“No,” she shook her head.  


“No?”  


“I’m not going to do that. Prim would hate if I did a sad dance for her. She was always happy. I want to do a happy dance.”  


He studied her. “Alright, Sweetheart. I’ll make that work.”  


*  


Haymitch and Cinna walked into the dance studio as Rye was setting up for their rehearsal. “Change of plans, Mellark.”  


He looked over. “Uh oh. What happened?”  


“Katniss wants to nix your planned dance. And seeing as she’s got one foot out the door to run away from these Most Memorable Year interviews I figured we need to give in to her this week.”  


“And that means…?” Rye raised an eyebrow.  


“New music, new dance, new costumes.”  


“Great. Because I can pull new dances out of my ass.”  


“You’re gonna have to. A jive. And it better be a damned good one.”  


He sighed. “Fine. Music?”  


Haymitch grinned. “Something that I know you’ll love. ‘Shake it Off.’”  


“Taylor Swift?” he groaned.  


“Apparently it was the kid’s favorite song. So we’re honoring the kid. The fact that it’s torturing your ears will just be a bonus.”  


Rye made a face. “I’m having trouble reconciling the woman who scowls and glares at me to this peppy poppy song. It’s so against type.’  


Haymitch nodded. “I know. That’s where Cinna comes in. I need you to make her as girly and poppy as you can. Flowers, pink, fluffy skirt, high pony tail.”  


“She’ll hate that,” Rye said.  


“Hey, whataya know, we found another bonus,” Haymitch smirked.  


*  


Katniss was exhausted after a long day of rehearsal followed by a one on one interview with Cressida. They were finally nearing the end, thank god. Cressida had asked her so many questions her brain was starting to go numb. She just couldn’t seem to say what they wanted her to. Cressida had saved the worst part of it for last. She had managed getting through talking the accident, and through her career journey with Gale. But then she had to talk about Prim. She hadn’t talked to anyone about her. And now she was going to have to have this conversation with the entire country. She had held it together for the most part, only shedding a few tears. But that had taken everything out of her and she felt the numbness seeping in to her brain. She wanted to go home, but she knew that Gale was still in rehearsal for another hour. She thought about waiting in the green room, but decided to go outside instead. She crossed the parking lot and sat against one of the trees that lined the studio’s perimeter. She curled her knees to her chest and felt the tears slowly start to flow down her face.  
Delly had left practice early that day to do her interviews, so Peeta had decided he would call it a day early as well. He was headed out to his truck when something caught his eye across the lot. Katniss was curled up under a tree with her head on her knees. He knew he should leave her alone. They were still on very formal terms with each other since the kissing incident. But something about her posture drew him to her. He walked closer and realized she was crying. He sped up and knelt beside her.  


She looked up and wiped her eyes. “You have the heaviest footsteps for someone who is so light on their feet when you dance.”  


He shrugged. “What’s wrong? Did my brother do something? I have no problem kicking his ass,” he put his hand on her shoulder.  


She shook her head. “I just finished my interviews.”  


“Ah,” Peeta nodded as he sank down on the grass beside her. “Your sister?” She nodded and her chin wrinkled as she tried not to start crying again. “I’m sorry. I don’t remember much, but she was a sweet girl.” Katniss nodded and looked down as her eyes started to tear up again. Peeta’s heart was aching for her. He reached around and pulled her into a hug. “If you need to cry or talk, I’m here,” he said softly.  


She sniffled and buried her face in his shoulder as the tears started anew. She had never been one for hugs. She had actively avoided them whenever possible if she was honest. But in this moment, this hug was exactly what she needed. She let herself cry into his shoulder while he gently rubbed her back. They didn’t speak. She felt safe in his arms like he might just be able to keep the pain from getting to her. After a long while she sniffled and looked up. “You smell like cinnamon,” she said.  


Peeta looked down at her and laughed. “Feel better?” She wiped her eyes again and nodded, but didn’t make a move to leave his arms.  


“It sucks,” she said. “But I think I’m cried out for now.”  


“Anytime you need a shoulder I’m here,” he said.  


She nodded. “Thanks,” she sat up. “Oh god, I ruined your shirt,” she tried to brush away the mascara stained wet spot from his chest.  


He grabbed her hand. “It doesn’t matter. It’s Rye’s.”  


“Oh…” she chuckled softly, then blushed when he squeezed her hand. “I better go. Gale should be finished soon and he’s my ride.”  


Peeta nodded and walked her over to Gales truck. “Can I borrow your phone?” he asked.  


“Oh sure,” she nodded and dug it out of her bag.  


She handed it to him and he typed in a few things. He handed it back. “Now you have my number…call me if you need anything okay? Day or night. I just to make sure you’re okay.”  


She nodded. “I’m okay.” She impulsively pulled him into a hug. “Good night, Peeta.” He nodded and walked away towards his car. She leaned against the truck to wait for Gale.  


Peeta heard his phone chime as he was pulling into his driveway. He opened the text from an unknown number and smiled.


	9. Chapter 9

“I look like a moron,” Katniss called from inside her dressing room.

  
Rye rolled his eyes as he leaned against the door. “Come on, Everdeen. Dress rehearsal starts in five minutes. We can’t change anything now.” He heard her sigh loudly and the door opened a crack.

  
“Fine, I’m coming out. But if you laugh at me, I’ll knee you in the crotch on live tv.” She stepped out of the dressing room into the hallway.

  
He looked her up and down from her high ponytail, to her fluffy petticoats, to her saddle shoe style dance shoes. He smirked. “You look like a five-year-old girl.” He caught her glare and shrugged. “You said I couldn’t laugh. Not that I couldn’t comment.”

  
Katniss made a face and tried to flatten out her poufy skirt. “I have sparkly bloomers on,” she said miserably.

  
Rye held up his hand. “Ew. Save the panty talk for my brother.”

  
Katniss blushed and punched his shoulder. Hard. She stalked down the hallway before he could react. She headed to the green room where the cast always gathered before dress rehearsal to watch the live promo for that night’s show. She flopped on the couch next to Gale and Madge. Gale looked at her costume and opened his mouth to comment. “Not a word,” she ground out with a scowl. She crossed her arms and turned towards the tv. Gale grimaced and held his hands up. Madge tried to hide a giggle.

  
Peeta watched the exchange in amusement from his spot on the couch across from them. Katniss looked miserable in her girly costume. She was more covered up than any of the other women in the room, but he thought she was somehow still the sexiest. He hadn’t known that ponytails and poodle skirts were a turn on, but she was making it work. His brother entered the room, glared at Katniss, and sat down next to Peeta. “What’s going on?” Peeta chuckled.

  
“She slugged me! It’s gonna leave a mark!” Rye whined.

  
“I’m sure you deserved it,” Peeta said.

  
Rye glared at him before shrugging. “Probably did. But you’re supposed to be on my side.”

  
“Stop your whining, Mellark,” Katniss said without looking at them. “The promo is starting.” Rye sent her yet another glare but turned to the tv without another word.

  
The live feed from the ballroom came on and a pink haired Caesar Flickerman appeared before them. “Don’t forget to tune in tonight at eight for Star Dance Challenge on Capitol TV! We’ve got some great dancing for you tonight, and some emotional stories as the stars share their Most Memorable Years with you. Here’s a taste…” he trailed off as they showed a few clips. “It’s going to be a fun night,” he grinned when the camera came back to him. “And the stars that survive tonight’s elimination will have to face next week with a new partner. That’s right, it’s Switch Up Week! And we want you to help us pick the new partnerships. You can head to our website to vote for the matches you want to see. Do you want to see our resident flirt Finnick match wits with the delightful Mags? Maybe see if Joanna can whip Gale into shape? Or maybe you want to see if the Star Crossed Lovers really have chemistry on the floor? You can vote as many times as you like from now until the end of the show tonight and we’ll announce the pairings before we sign off air. See you tonight!”

  
Katniss wished she could disappear into a hole. How embarrassing. There was no way she would survive a week of dancing with Peeta. Being trapped in a room with him for hours a day sounded terrible. She couldn’t help but notice the tingle in her stomach that possibly meant that her body didn’t think it sounded terrible at all. Traitor. She glanced over at him, and he caught her eye with a small smile and shrugged. Ugh. Of course he was fine with it. He didn’t have to worry about making a fool of himself every two seconds.

  
Peeta frowned when Katniss glanced away from him so quickly. It was obvious that the last thing she wanted was to be his new partner. But he knew she wouldn’t have any sort of choice. On a regular year, the show would have been eager to have the brothers switch partners. Now this year with the added Star Crossed Lovers spin there was no way they wouldn’t be dancing together. Whatever. He was a professional. And it was just a dance. He could get through a dance. Unless it was the rumba. Oh god. He was not sure he could make it through a rumba. He jumped when he felt a tugging on his arm.

  
“Earth to Peeta,” Delly said. “It’s time for dress rehearsal.” She grabbed his hands and pulled him up. “Are you okay?”

  
He nodded and ran his hand through his unruly curls. “Yeah. Just thinking about our foxtrot.”

  
She eyed him. “Mmmhmm. Is Foxtrot our new codename for Katniss now?”

  
Peeta rolled his eyes. “Shut up, Delly.” He pulled her out of the room. “Come on. We need to go over the turn section again.”

  
*

  
They had made it through dress rehearsal unscathed for the most part. Katniss had wacked Rye in the face with her ridiculous pony tail which he still wouldn’t shut up about, but the actual dance went fine. Now the only thing she had to worry about was not breaking down in tears when the predance package played. They were performing towards the end of the show again, so she had already sat through a lot of sob stories. The interviews hadn’t seemed to affect the others as much her. Maybe she had let them dig too deep. She caught sight of a slightly sweaty Peeta coming back from his dance with Delly. She had to try very hard not to stare at him as he moved towards them. She stiffened when she realized he was going to sit next to her. She drew in a breath.

  
Peeta leaned in to her. “How are you holding up?” he asked with a concerned look. “I know this must be hell for you.”

  
“I’m okay,” she said, surprised and slightly pleased that he had taken the time to ask. She guessed since she had cried all over him the other day, he felt compelled.

“I’m just worried that I’m going to cry if I watch the package.” She drew her bottom lip between her teeth.

  
“Don’t watch,” he said. “Shut your eyes and cover your ears and hum really loud.”

  
“I’ll look like a crazy person.”

  
“No you won’t. And even if you do people will understand. You have the hardest story to tell tonight by far. Don’t let it get in the way of your performance. I watched the dance at rehearsal. You were fantastic.”

  
“Really?” she smiled shyly up at him.

  
Peeta nodded. “He’s still not teaching you the technique that I would,” he shot his brother a look. “But you’re doing so well. You’re the best star here.”

  
“You’re supposed to say that about Delly,” she grinned.

  
“Well, we’re going to win,” he smirked. “But you’re a really good dancer too.”

  
“Thanks a lot,” she rolled her eyes with a giggle. A giggle? Did she just giggle? She was a little mortified. She glanced away to cover the pink in her cheeks. “Rye, I’m gonna head down to holding. We’re next.”

  
Rye glanced away from Delly. “Uh huh, sure. I’ll be there in a minute.” Katniss rolled her eyes again and shared a glance with Peeta before waving and heading out of the Red Room. Peeta waited for Rye to finish his conversation before grabbing his arm. “What, Peeta Bread? I gotta go.”

  
“Don’t let her watch the footage from her interviews. She’ll lose it.”

  
Rye smirked. “Aww, look at you being all protective of Katniss. How sweet.”

  
“I’m serious,” Peeta said. “I told you how torn up she was the other day. Do you really think her sobbing is going to add to your jive?”

  
“Fine,” Rye said with a grin. “I’ll go whisper sweet nothings in her ear to distract her.” Rye winced when Peeta’s fist connected with his shoulder. “Ow!” he scowled rubbing the same sore spot that Katniss had hit earlier. “It’s time for you and your little girlfriend to stop hitting me. You two really need to bang to get out some of that tension you are obviously holding inside.”

  
Peeta just rolled his eyes. “Go.”

  
Rye sighed dramatically and headed out of the Red Room. He found Katniss ready to go on the floor. “Ready, Everdeen?”

  
Katniss nodded nervously. “As ready as I’ll ever be.” He stepped towards her as the clip begin to play. He put his hands over her ears and pulled her head down into his chest. He started singing ‘Shake It Off’ loudly and very much off key into her ear. She laughed softly into his shirt and let him shield her from the interview on the big screen.

  
Peeta sat backstage watching the crying Katniss on the little tv monitor on the wall. His heart was breaking for her. It was almost painful watching her walk out of the interview room and a little mini version of himself cradling her in the parking lot. Peeta hadn’t know there were cameras on them, but they had caught every moment of the exchange. He knew she would be upset if she knew they were trying to make a romantic moment out of a really traumatizing day. He hoped that Rye had listened to him and was distracting her. He was pretty sure he never wanted her to see the goopy look he was giving her as they sat under that tree.

  
“Poor girl,” Delly said sadly. “But you were so sweet with her. You made everything better. That’s so romantic!”

  
Peeta shrugged and looked out at the dance floor where Rye and Katniss had taken their starting positions. She seemed fine, so his brother must have done a good enough job. She was smiling, and it was one of the most beautiful sights Peeta had ever seen. Delly was wrong. He hadn’t made anything better and he knew that he would never really be able to make the loss of her sister any better. But he also knew in that moment that he’d spend the rest of his life trying to make sure she never looked as broken again.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know it's been awhile. I rewrote this chapter several times because I couldn't decide which way to go. But I hope you like it. I know this has been a slow burn, but we're getting close to the big moment. Thanks as always for reading and your kind words.

“We made it!” Rye hugged Katniss when the cameras shut off for the last commercial break of the night.  


Katniss let herself jump up and down a few times with excitemet. “We did!” She pulled away. “I’m gonna miss Mags though.”  


He nodded. “She was hilarious. But I think she was happy to go. The practices were rough on her.”  


Katniss nodded. “I’m so happy it wasn’t us! I don’t even care that the whole country probably saw me bawling like a baby.”  


“They did,” he nodded. “But I think it’s going to work in our favor so it will all be worth it.”  


“I hope so,” she sighed.  


They looked up when they heard a PA calling everyone back to the stage. “Gonna miss me this week, Everdeen?” Rye smirked.  


“Not a bit.”  


“Rude,” he made a face. “Whoever you get…you can’t like them more than me. That’s not allowed.”  


“No promises,” she grinned.  


Rye rolled his eyes and pushed her towards the group of stars that were congregating in a line across the stage. “See ya in a week,” he saluted her.  


“He’s so dumb,” she laughed when she slid into place beside Delly.  


“Maybe,” Delly said. “But he’s hot.”  


“Ew,” Katniss made a face. “Ew.”  


Delly laughed. “He looks almost exactly like the one that you can’t keep your eyes off of.”  


Katniss blushed. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” She crossed her arms and stepped away towards Gale.  


“Hey, Catnip,” he said. “Who are you hoping for?” he nodded towards the cluster of professional dancers across from them.  


“Anyone who’s last name isn’t Mellark.”  


Gale laughed. “Riiiight. I’m hoping for Annie. Because Joanna scares me.”  


Katniss nodded. “I would make fun of you because she’s like five feet tall, but she terrifies me too.” Gale nodded as the PA came back and handed each of them a blindfold. Katniss looked at him. “Seriously?”  


“Yup. Makes it more fun. Put it on and don’t take it off until Caesar says to.”  


“Yeah, yeah,” she sighed as she slid it over her face. She tapped her foot anxiously as she listened to the various PAs positioning people across from them. In all honesty she didn’t know what she wanted to happen. Half of her was hoping the odds were in here favor and she wouldn’t end up with Peeta. The other half of her, however, was yearning to get the chance to dance with him again. She shivered a little as she remembered how it had felt to be in his arms during their waltz rehearsal. She had dreamed about that almost kiss more times than she was willing to admit. She clenched her fists nervously, and cursed the commercial break for turning into an eternity. Finally, she heard Caeser speak.  


“Welcome back! Are you ready to see the new couples that you created with your votes?” He paused to allow the audience to cheer. 

“We’ve been a little evil and blindfolded our dancers so everyone finds out at the same time. Now, pros, I want you to reach across and take your new partners hand.”  


Peeta took a deep breath and reached blindly in front of him until he clasped a small hand. His heart started thumping when he made the connection. He knew immediately that it was her. He vividly remembered the feel of her touch. It was Katniss and she was his. At least for a week. He took a deep breath as Cesar started talking again.  


“Alright, they look ready. On the count of three you can take off your blindfolds and meet your destiny! Count with me audience! One!...Two!...Three!!”  


Katniss pushed the blindfold off her head and her eyes met a sea of blue. She blinked twice then felt her face breaking into a grin. She saw Peeta’s eyes light up and he pulled her into a hug. “I’m glad it’s you,” she whispered in his ear. He beamed and moved to stand beside her. Katniss’s stomach flip flopped. She felt herself leaning into him when he threw his arm around her shoulders. She didn’t realize the show had signed off the air until the crowd started moving around them.  


Peeta grinned down at her. “Well, partner, I gotta go find out what our dance is. Hopefully it’s a good one.”  


Katniss nodded shyly. “I hope so too.”  


“You’re good enough to do any dance though, so it really doesn’t matter,” he ran his hand through his curls. “At least you get a break from my brother, right?”  


“Exactly,” she giggled. Giggled. Again. She hated people that giggled. Ugh. She hated herself.  


He paused as he watched her draw her bottom lip into her mouth nervously. She looked up at him when he didn’t say anything. He shook his head. He had been caught him staring. How embarrassing. “Right. Uh…Well, I’ll see you bright and early tomorrow then?”  


Katniss nodded nervously. “I’ll be there.”  


“You’ll be fine,” he smiled and squeezed her arm before rushing off. God, could he have been more awkward? This was going to be a long week. He followed the crowd and bumped into Rye coming out of the producer’s office. “What’d ya get?” he asked.  


“Foxtrot,” he shrugged. “Delly should do fine with it. We’ll do something sassy.”  


“Just don’t get so distracted trying to get her to sleep with you that you get us kicked off,” Peeta said.  


Rye rolled his eyes. “Unlike you, I don’t have to try that hard, Peeta Bread. Why don’t you just concentrate on not molesting my partner and making her run away again like last time?” He punched his arm as he went past towards the green room.  


“I didn’t molest her!” he yelled after him. He turned and saw the PA waiting to hand him an envelope and blushed. He hated his brother sometimes. “I didn’t molest anyone,” he tried to explain. “My brother is just being an ass. As usual…is that my envelope?” He pulled it out of her hand before she could say a word and sped down the hall to his dressing room.  


**  


Peeta walked into the studio early the next morning with a bag of cheesebuns and two coffees in his arms. He yawned as he sat up his ipod and put on his shoes. He sat against the mirror and took a long sip of the coffee. Katniss knocked lightly on the door as she let herself in. “Morning, Peeta.”  


“Good morning,” he smiled. “Come sit. I brought coffee and cheesebuns.”  


“Cheesebuns? The world famous Mellark cheesebuns?” she asked. He nodded. “Did you go all the way out to your dad’s bakery this morning?”  


“Oh no. I um…I made them last night. I couldn’t sleep. And when I can’t sleep I bake.” He held out the bag to her.  


She took one and studied it. “They look like the ones I remember from when I was little.”  


He shrugged. “It should taste the same. We haven’t changed the recipe.”  


“These were always my favorite,” she bit into it. She moaned a little. “Yes, these are exactly the same. God, this is so good.”  


Peeta silently cursed at the jolt that went straight down to his crotch when she moaned. He had to keep it cool if he intended to dance with her for the next eight hours. “I’m glad you like them,” he squeezed out as he thought of every disgusting thought he could think of to calm himself down. Katniss nodded and licked the cheese off her fingers. She was not helping his cause.  


“So what’s our dance?” she asked.  


“Rumba,” he said.  


“Oh,” she nodded. “Of course.”  


Peeta nodded. “Yeah. We got that John Legend song. ‘All of Me.’ You know it?”  


Katniss pursed her lips then started humming softly. “Yeah. It’s a good song. Romantic.”  


Peeta nodded. “Do you know much about the rumba?”  


“Just that it’s the sexy dance,” she shrugged. “Rye didn’t talk about it much.”  


“Of course he didn’t,” he rolled his eyes. “It is the sexy dance.” He paused. “Rumba is the vertical expression of a horizontal desire.”  


Katniss blushed. She had given herself a big pep talk out in the hallway trying to convince herself to not be a spazz today. But she was already blushing. She was a grownup. She needed to start acting like one. Normal grownups talked about sex without turning into a tomato. She looked down at the floor. “So standing up sex,” she said.  


Peeta chuckled. “Kind of. But I want our dance to be more about anticipation than the actual act. I want it to be striped back. Just a man and a woman dancing together and showing their emotions.”  


“I’m not very good at emotions,” she said.  


“We’ll work on it.” He stood and pulled her up with him. “The rumba is a very sensual dance. We want them to feel the emotion and intensity.” He moved so he could look deep into her eyes. “We have to share this intensity. Every time we pass, we have to connect.” He moved away then turned back and caught her eyes again. “Intensity here,” he said. “You look away and you come back and it’s me. Then we go away again but we instantly connect again, it’s us.” He turned back to her. “If we can sell that intensity, we can sell the dance.”  


“Eye contact makes me nervous,” she said.  


Peeta nodded. “We can work on the steps first, and once you’re more comfortable with me we can try eye contact again, alright?” She nodded miserably. He moved towards her and put his hand on her waist. She jumped away awkwardly and felt the color come up in her cheeks again. He stepped back. “I know you don’t trust me yet, but I am going to have to touch you if we’re going to dance together. I swear no inappropriate touching.”  


“I know,” she scowled. So much for being an adult. “You just startled me.”  


“Okay,” he nodded easily. “So if you can stop looking at me like I’m trying to feel you up, I can stop feeling like a perv. And we’ll get through this dance and maybe even have a shot at being friends.”  


“I’ve never been very good at friends,” she said, biting her lip.  


“Well, you’re in luck because I’m great at making friends. It helps if you know the other person. I hardly know anything about you other than you scowl a lot and sing pretty.”  


Katniss shrugged uncomgfortably. “That about sums me up.”  


“No way. There’s more than that you just don’t want to tell me.” She hesitated. “You see, Katniss, the way the whole friend thing works is you have to tell each other the deep stuff.”  


“The deep stuff?” she raised an eyebrow.  


“Yeah,” he nodded with a grin. “Like…what’s your favorite color?”  


“Well now you’ve stepped over the line,” she tried to hide her smile. “Besides I already know your favorite color. Who’s bad at friends now?”  


“You do not.”  


“I do too. It’s orange. Pale, like the sunset.”  


He studied her. “So you have been paying attention.”


	11. Chapter Eleven

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! I am so so so sorry for making you wait this long. I know it's been forever. Life happened. I had a death in the family last year and just haven't really felt like writing since then. But I'm back now, and I'm going to try to post once a week from now on. This chapter is shorter than some of the others, but I think you're going to like it. So much thanks to all of you who actually come back to read this.

Peeta leaned against the table in the costume shop and watched as Cinna sketched the design for Katniss’s rumba costume. “I want her in a leotard,” Peeta said. “Exactly her skin tone and covered with stones. Then a sheer white drapey thing around her. Basically, I want her to look like the morning after…naked in bed tangled in a sheet.” Cinna looked at him and raised an eyebrow. He felt his face heat up. “Not literally!” he said quickly. “Classy. Fully covered. That’s what I meant.”

Cinna smirked. “Have you been imagining your new partner naked, Mr. Mellark?”

“No!” he yelped. “It’s the song.”

  
Cinna just smiled. “Alright. How about this?” he sketched something quickly.

  
Peeta looked it over. “Exactly. And I want a shirt made from the same white fabric,” he said.

  
“Because you’re tangled in the sheets together,” Cinna said with a grin.

  
Peeta chose to ignore him and looked at his watch. “I gotta go. Rehearsal starts at ten.”

  
Cinna nodded. “We’ll get started on these costumes for you. They’re going to be gorgeous.”

  
“Thanks, Cinna.” He grabbed his bag and rushed off down the hall to their studio. He didn’t want to be late. They still had a lot to work on. Katniss had done surprisingly well picking up the somewhat complex choreography he had set on her. Her technique was clean, and she hit every step. But he still didn’t buy it. She was so far in her head she might as well have been dancing alone. He had forced her to make eye contact by choreographing it in, but she still wasn’t exuding any emotions. And he knew it would be a huge disappointment to everyone if the star-crossed lovers had zero chemistry. If he was honest he was more than a little upset about the lack of chemistry himself. He had harbored the crush for so long that he guessed he had fooled himself into thinking that if he ever got the chance he would be able to sweep her off her feet. In reality, all he had managed to do so far was keep her from running out of the room screaming.

  
Katniss looked up from putting her shoes on when he entered the room. “Morning,” she smiled at him.

  
He gave her a small smile back and dropped beside her to put on his own shoes. “We’re going to work on our connection today,” he said. “I know it’s weird for you, but if we don’t connect our scores are going to be crap. And I will never live it down with Rye if I get you kicked off.” Katniss chewed her lip and nodded. “Okay,” he nodded. “It’s just acting okay? We have to get into the mindset that I’m singing this song for you. And you are my gorgeous girlfriend.”

  
“Gorgeous might be a stretch,” she gave him a half smile. “We should probably just start with girlfriend. That will be hard enough to imagine already without also pretending I’m pretty.”

  
He shook his head. “Stop it. You’re the prettiest girl I’ve ever seen.” He inwardly cringed when he realized what he’d just said.

  
She blinked at him. Had he really just said that? After a moment it dawned on her. “Right. We’re acting.”

  
“Oh…yeah,” he said weakly, letting it go. “I know being vulnerable is hard for you, but just let me in past your walls. Just for a minute and a half.” He pulled her to her feet and used the remote to turn on the song. They listened to it through a few times before he turned to her. “Come on. We’ll do it step by step.”

  
He led her through the dance giving her suggestions and making her repeat things until her facial expressions and eye contact satisfied him. After a couple of hours both of their nerves were starting to fray when they hadn’t gotten anywhere. Peeta could see she was trying, but she was still holding back. Katniss was getting really sick of the word ‘again.’ He ran his hands through his curls in frustration. “Katniss, you have to work with me here. You’re a freakin brick wall! Just let me in!”

  
“I can’t!” she glared at him. “Don’t you think I would if I could?”

  
“Then tell me what I can do to help you.”

  
“I don’t know!” she threw up her hands.

  
“Is it me? Do I just inspire no feelings in you at all? Do you even have feelings?” he rubbed his eyes.

  
“Of course I have feelings!” she snapped.

  
“Then why can’t you just channel them into this? I know you don’t have any romantic feelings for me, but can’t you just pretend I’m someone else long enough for us to get through this?” He watched her for a moment. Realization suddenly dawned on him. “That’s it, isn’t it? You have feelings for someone and you’re letting that block you,” he said accusingly.

  
Katniss clenched her fists. “So what if I do?” she spat out. “I’m allowed to have feelings.”

  
Peeta felt the jealousy rise up inside him. He tried to maintain a blank face as he rolled his eyes. “Of course you are. You could have just told me before we wasted all that time.”

  
“I didn’t realize I was under any obligation to tell you anything.”

  
“You’re not. But that’s something you would tell a friend. But I guess we were never really friends were we, Katniss?”

  
“I couldn’t tell you!” she protested.

  
“Why not?” he shot back at her. “Who is this oh so great mystery guy anyway? He can’t be all that great if you won’t even talk about him.”

  
She half growled. “Yeah, he can be a real asshole,” she said, wanting to hate this beautiful boy standing in front of her, but not being able to look away from his eyes. They had turned a deep blue in the midst of his frustration. He was driving her crazy.

  
“Girls always like the assho…” his words were cut off when he was unceremoniously pushed against the mirror. He didn’t have a second to comprehend what was happening before Katniss’s lips were on his. It took him a moment to realize he was being kissed, and another moment to begin to kiss back. He had no idea what was happening, but he sure as hell wasn’t going to be the first one to pull away.

  
Katniss pulled back a few moments later to take a breath. Peeta’s arms had snaked around her small frame pulling her tightly against him at some point during the kiss. She couldn’t move, but realized she didn’t mind much.

  
Peeta blinked a few times and tilted his head. He looked ridiculously like a puppy dog. He started to speak then cleared his throat. “Wha…what was that?”

  
She reached up at pushed one of his wayward curls back into place gently. “Well, I thought it was a kiss,” she said, not meeting his eyes.

  
“You just told me you have feelings for someone.”

  
“Yes,” she nodded.

  
“Then you kissed me,” he said.

  
“Yes,” she nodded again.

  
“Katniss...I…” She finally looked at him and saw the confusion in his eyes.

  
She shook her head slowly. How was he not getting this? This boy might be the death of her. “It’s you, you idiot!”


	12. Chapter Twelve

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A little bit more for ya. It's short, but sweet. The next chapter gets back with all the rest of the cast of characters. Thank you all for your feedback and comments. It means the world to me. Happy reading!

Shock. There was no other word for it. Peeta was in utter shock. He was presently sandwiched between the cold, hard surface of the mirror and the warm soft curves of Katniss Everdeen. He had been talking and the next thing he knew she was kissing him. And now she was telling him that she had feelings for him. His brain was moving too slowly. “Me?” he asked dumbly.

“Yes you,” she nodded. “It’s always been you.”

Peeta blinked and tightened his arms around her. “That’s supposed to be my line.” She tilted her head back to look up at him. “The first day of kindergarten. And every day since.” Her eyes widened as he leaned in to kiss her again. She let out a small whimper when he pulled away. He let his eyes roam over her face. “Get your bag,” he whispered softly.

“What? Why? Where are we going?”

Peeta grinned. “Just hurry before the camera crew gets back.” She nodded and grabbed her bag. He took her hand and pulled her out of the room quickly. They rushed down the sparkly hallway and slipped through a door that Katniss had never noticed before. It led to a dark stairwell. “Wait here,” he said. “I’ll be right back.”

Katniss frowned when he slipped back out into the glitter-fiilled hallway that was such a contrast to the tiny dark spot he had abandoned her in. A brief moment of panic rushed through her and stamped down the excitement that had been rising in her. What if this was some sort of trick to get her back for basically mauling him in the studio? She scowled at herself. She jumped when the door pushed open again. Peeta came into the tiny space with a beaming smile. “Oh no,” he stopped short. “You’re scowling.”

Katniss tried to wipe the look off her face when she saw the disappointment welling up in his eyes. “It was just dark,” she brushed it off. “Where did you go anyway?”

He held his bag up. “Rations,” he smiled. He took her hand again and led her up the staircase. When he pushed open the door she saw the skyline of the Capitol spread before her. He stepped around her to close the door.

Katniss tore her eyes from the view and looked around the roof. The area was small, but someone had transformed it into a lovely little garden area with tinkling wind chimes. “I had no idea this was here,” she said. “It’s beautiful.”

Peeta nodded. “I don’t think many people know. I was talking to the guy who cleans the building the other day and he told me about it. Someone built it a long time ago to use for some show, but it’s really too small for much so it fell out of use. He found it a few years ago and started tending to it. He said I could hang out up here.”

Katniss shook her head. She’d never even seen the janitor, let alone befriended him. Leave it to Peeta to make friends with every person in the building. She used the hand that was still joined to his to tug him close. “You’re really nice, you know?” she leaned into him.

“Nice?” he made a face. “You are,” she laughed. “You’re lots of things. But nice is a big one. Only you would befriend every person in this building.”

Peeta shrugged and put his bag down. He motioned to the middle of the garden. “I just thought maybe we needed some time without cameras and PAs watching our every move.”

“We’re gonna dance up here?” she looked at him skeptically.

“Yup,” he nodded. “You can let down your walls up here. It’s just the two of us. Whatever you feel you can put it into the dance.”

“Oh, okay…” she said.

Peeta and nodded and pulled her to him. He kissed her deeply. He looked at her as he pulled away. “That!!” he said. “That look. That’s what I want to see every time we connect.”

“Okay,” she shrugged and blew out a shaky breath.

He turned the music on his phone. “Ready?” She moved into her starting position and nodded. She closed her eyes and shut out everything around her. They started dancing. She let her body melt into his when he pulled her close. She shivered when he ran his hand down her side. “Good girl,” he said under her breath as he spun her out. He pulled her back to him and she ran her hand over his hair as they moved their hips together. She sucked in a breath as his hand grazed her stomach. They moved through the rest of the dance until he spun her in and dipped her low. He leaned his forehead against hers as he caught his breath. “Holy crap, Katniss.”

“Yeah,” she said weakly as he set her back on her feet.

Peeta shut his eyes for a moment to collect himself. “Water,” he said. He moved over to his backpack and pulled out two bottles of water before collapsing onto the wicker lounge chair that overlooked the skyline. He patted the chair beside him.

She sat down close to his side. He handed her the other bottle of water. “Thanks,” she took it. They drank silently for a few minutes. She bit her lip nervously. “So…”

“So,” he smirked. “You’re in love with me.”

“I never said that,” she shook her head.

“Your body sure did,” he grinned.

Her mouth dropped open. She smacked his arm. “Shut up, ass.”

“Okay fine. But you’re into me?”

“Against my better judgement,” she teased.

“So you’ll go to dinner with me? After the live show?” he ran his thumb over her hand.

“It’s a date,” she blushed.

“Finally,” he said.

“But only if you promise to keep me in cheesebuns for the foreseeable future.”

“I’ll keep you in cheesebuns for the rest of your life,” he brushed his lips over hers.

“Deal,” she whispered.


	13. Chapter 13

Katniss and Gale sat side by side against the mirror watching Peeta and Johanna do a dress run of the pro dance they would be performing that night on the live show.  She let her eyes run up and down over his body as he moved in time with the music.  The past two days had both flown past and dragged past painfully slowly.  The had made an agreement that night on the roof that they would keep their new- found feelings a secret until after their rumba was performed.  Neither of them were eager to share until they had had a chance to explore their feelings on their own.  Peeta also didn’t want to be the distraction that got Katniss kicked off the show.  Now was not the time for her to go back to District 12.  It hadn’t stopped him from baking a batch of cheesebuns for her as proof that he planned to keep his promise.  And it wasn’t stopping her from basically drooling over him in the rehearsal room. 

Gale watched Katniss from the corner of his eye.  Her eyes followed every move Peeta’s hips made. He had to hold back a chuckle when he saw her face fall into her trademark scowl when Johanna ran her hand down Peeta’s body.  He didn’t entirely blame her.  The two of them looked incredibly sexy dancing together.  Not to mention that Johanna was more than a little scary.  He had spent the week dancing with her pretty sure that one of them wouldn’t come out alive.  And by one of them he probably meant himself.  Because he didn’t hesitate to think that she would chop him to pieces if provoked.

The music came to an end and Peeta spun Johanna out to their final position.  “Hey brainless!” she called.   Katniss glanced at Gale not entirely sure on who Johanna was addressing.  “Yeah, you, brainless.” 

“What?” Katniss scowled.

“You can keep your pathetic glares to yourself.  Bread boy is so not my type.”

“I wasn’t glaring,” her scowl grew deeper. 

Johanna shrugged with a smirk.  She walked back to Peeta.  “Can you help me with this strap?” she asked.  He nodded and unhooked the strap running across her back.  “Thanks,” she winked at him as she turned back towards them.  Katniss’s eyes widened as Johanna dropped her top.  She wiggled out of the rest of the dress and left it in a puddle on the floor.  Katniss scowled when she saw Peeta’s eyes drop down to take in the view.  She heard Gale chuckle and backhanded him across the chest. She felt a certain satisfaction in hearing him let out a sharp breath of pain. 

Johanna smirked.  “Thanks.  Let’s do it again sometimes.”  She winked at Peeta then stalked out of the room.

 Katniss looked disbelievingly at the boys and rolled her eyes when she saw that both of them were following Johanna out of the room with their eyes.  “Ugh, pigs,” she said as she scooped up her water bottle and took her own exit.

“Katniss!” she heard Peeta call.  “Wait!”  She ignored him and continued down the long hallway to her dressing room.  When she got inside she kicked off her shoes and pulled on her old comfy hoodie over her practice clothes.  She cuddled up on the corner of her couch and decided to ignore her buzzing phone and the world outside her door.  She could sulk until she had to get ready.  She couldn’t blame Peeta exactly.  Johanna was hot.  She had the kind of body that every man wanted to cuddle up with at night.  And she had served the view of her body up on a silver platter.  So it wasn’t that she was upset with him for looking, she told herself.  She just knew she could never compare.  Her long years of malnutrition had taken a toll on her body.  She hadn’t had the calories she needed to grow boobs and hips when she was barely sustaining life.  Her body had softened with the additional food in her diet, but she would never compare to Johanna’s killer curves.   Katniss knew she wasn’t much to look at.  Boring hair and boring face.  Once the novelty of hooking up with an old classmate wore off Peeta would leave her in the dust for a girl like Johanna.  She doubted there was even any point in trying.  Her phone buzzed again and she reached over to the counter to pick it up.

_Peeta 2:15 p.m.:  Where’d you go?_

_Peeta 2:15 p.m.:  You’re not mad are you?_

_Peeta  2:17 p.m.:  Katniss, come on.  It was just a joke.  It’s Jo.  She’s like my sister._

_Peeta 2:20 p.m.:  You know I can’t follow you to your dressing room if we’re keeping this a secret.  I didn’t mean to look.  It was just there in front of me._

_Peeta 2:28 p.m.:   Okay, fine.  I’m sorry I looked._

_Peeta 2:35 p.m.: Seriously, Katniss?  Answer the door._

As Katniss read the message she heard him knock.  She pushed back her hood and pulled open the door.  She stepped aside and let him enter before shutting the door firmly.  He looked at her. “You’re mad?”

“No,” she said.  “Not mad.”

“Then why are you ignoring my texts?”

“I was sulking.”

“Okay. Why?” he wrinkled his brow.

“Because Johanna is hot and I’m not.”

“What?” he let out a chuckle before pulling his face back into a neutral expression at her glare.  He put his hands on her shoulders. “Katniss, you can’t be serious.”

“I am.  She’s all gorgeous and naked.  She’s the kind of girl that you’ll leave me for.  If we do this.”

“If?” he said.

Katniss looked at him miserably.  “Maybe we shouldn’t even try.”

“Katniss, if you don’t want to be with me that’s fine.  I won’t be happy, but it’s fine.  But you can’t let fear keep us from trying.”

“Everyone leaves me, Peeta.”

He pulled her into a hug.  “I’ll never leave you.  Not by choice. “

She looked up at him.  “You’ll stay?”

Peeta looked at her seriously.  “Always.”  He leaned his head down and kissed her.  “It’s not an if, Katniss. We’re doing this.  Okay?  I’m all in.” 

Katniss hesitated for a moment then nodded.  “All in.”

Peeta’s face broke into a grin and he kissed her again.  “Oh, and by the way, I’m more than willing to make the sacrifice to help you have more confidence.  I’ll conduct as many private viewings of your nude body as are needed to make you believe you’re the most glorious woman on earth.  I can be a very enthusiastic audience member when my interests are aroused.”

Katniss pulled away from him with wide eyes before seeing his eyes dance with amusement. She smacked his chest.  “You are such a perv!”

Peeta laughed heartily.  “Is it perverted for a man to want to see his amazingly gorgeous girlfriend naked?”

“Girlfriend, huh?”

“Gorgeous girlfriend,” he corrected. 

Katniss looked thoughtful for a moment then snuggled back into him.  “I can deal with that.”

**

Katniss chewed on a carrot stick and flipped through a magazine as she waited for Gale to finish for the day.  She and Peeta had finished their practice early because he didn’t want to over rehearse her before the live show the next night.  She had spent a few minutes watching the hilarious sight of Johanna dragging Gale through a jive and then retired to the green room to relax.  She was almost to the point of drifting off when another body suddenly dropped heavily onto hers.

“Miss me, Everdeen?” Rye grinned at her. 

“Jesus, Rye,” she groaned.  “Get off.”

He rolled sideways until he was stretched out beside her.  “Well I don’t miss you either.  Delly is much more pleasant.”

“You just like her cause she fawns over you.”

“I like her for lots of reasons,” he said.  “Lots of sexual reasons.”

“Ew,” she scowled at him.

“Aw, there it is. I missed the scowl a little.” 

She rolled her eyes.  “Did you want something, Rye?  Or did you just come over here to annoy me?”

He propped his head up with his arm.  “I wanted to know how your rumba is going.  Because last I checked in on you you looked like you were in two different rooms.”

Katniss rolled over. “What do you care?”

“I care because if you get kicked off I go with you.  Even though it will be Peeta’s fault.”

“We’re fine,” she said.  “I mean the dance is fine.”

He leaned his head over her shoulder.  “Uh huh…”

“It is.  We finished it.  He choreographed a lot of eye contact, connections, and all the other crap I hate.”

“Good,” he nodded. “I just hope it’s believable.”

“It’s fine, Rye.  Go away.”

“Okay, fine,” he pushed himself up off of her.  He grinned as he hovered over her.  “God, wouldn’t Peeta Bread be jealous if he could see us now?  I’ll have to tell him I practically got to second base with you just now.”

“Yeah, right,” she drew up her knees and turned so he tumbled off of her onto the floor.

“I see this week hasn’t done anything to make you any more charming,” he grumbled as he rubbed his butt.

“Right back out ya, perv,” she grinned. 

Rye grinned and dropped a kiss on the top of her head.  “See ya later, Everdeen.”

“Bye,” she threw the carrot at him as he left.

Rye scooped up the carrot and shot it back at her before running out.  He went out to his truck where Peeta was waiting. 

“Finally,” Peeta said. “What took you so long?”

“Sorry.  I was busy getting to second base with your girlfriend.”

Peeta tossed his bag into the truck.  “Excuse me?”

“I was snuggling on the couch with Katniss.”

“Yeah right,” Peeta scoffed.

“It’s true!”

“How long did it take her to kick your ass when you tried that?”

“About two minutes actually.  And that was about a minute and a half longer than I thought she’d last.”

“You’re lucky she didn’t put an arrow between your eyes.”

“You are correct,” he nodded.  “You really didn’t make any progress with her at all this week?”

Peeta sighed. “No, Rye.”

“Damn. I was hoping you’d finally seal the deal.”

“Sorry to disappoint,” Peeta said sourly.  He turned to look out the window and bit his lip to hide a grin. 

“Damn right I’m disappointed. You’re a Mellark.  You should have gotten her to bed ages ago.”

“Ignoring you,” Peeta said.

“If you don’t make a move soon I’m going to do it for you.”

Peeta turned back and glared at him.  “Don’t you dare.”

“Then man up!”

“Just drive,” Peeta huffed.

**

Katniss chewed on the inside of her cheek nervously as she waited for Peeta before the live show.  She looked down at the dress that he had designed for her and smiled.  It was simple and beautiful. She would never be fully comfortable in the crazy ballroom costumes, but this one was as perfect as a sparkly dress could be.  She felt sexy, which she wasn’t sure could be attributed solely to the dress.  She suspected it had a lot to do with the way Peeta had looked at her when she came out of the dressing room during their first fitting.  She leaned against the wall and tried not to smash the curls that had been artfully arranged down her back.  After a moment Peeta finally came out of his dressing room.  His matching white shirt accentuated his strong muscles and made her a little weak in the knees if she was honest.  “Well hello,” she grinned.

Peeta held his arms out and turned in a circle. “Like what you see, Everdeen?”

“Eh,” she shrugged with a grin. 

“Oh, playing that way, are we?” he moved closer to her and backed her up against the wall.  “Then I won’t tell you that you look hot as fu…” he broke off when she pushed him away from her.  He gave her puppy dog eyes before catching site of the cameras from the corner of his eye.  He sighed.  “Okay, come on, Everdeen.  We need to warm up.”  She followed his lead to the red room and started stretching.  “Hips loose?” he reached around her and placed his hands on her hips.

Her cheeks colored slightly.  “I guess.”

Peeta moved closer to her.  “Come on. Cuban motion exercise,” he said, guiding her hips in a figure eight with his hands.

Delly stopped mid-sentence and grabbed Rye.  “Oh my god,” she whispered.  “Are you seeing this?!” 

Rye looked over.  “Oy! Get a room!”

Katniss jumped away from Peeta embarrassed.  “You ruined it!” Delly hit him in the chest.

Rye snickered.  “I’m just trying to help!”

Peeta grabbed Katniss’s hand and pulled her out of the room hitting smacking Rye as he went past.  “Where are we going?”

“Away from my brother,” he pulled her to the holding area.  “Seriously, do you feel warm?”

Katniss nodded. “I’m fine. Ready to go.”

“Good,” he nodded and stretched his back.  “I figured Rye would make you nervous.”

“You’re probably right,” she glanced around before moving closer to whisper in her ear.  “But his idea wasn’t bad.  Maybe we could get a room sometimes soon.”

His cheeks tinged pink as he looked down into her eyes.  “Anytime,” he smiled.  He brushed his lips across hers quickly before pulling away. 

Katniss grinned.  “I can’t believe we’re last again,” she sighed.

“Save the best for last,” he shrugged as the a PA called for them to take their spots.  They ran through the intro and she giggled when they got the biggest round of applause.  “They love us,” he grinned.

They sat side by side as they watched all the other couples dance.  They laughed through Gale and Johanna’s video package and rolled their eyes at Rye and Delly’s flirty footage.  “I think they’re the ones who need a room,” she whispered.  It was finally their turn after Rue and Finnick danced. 

“You alright?” Peeta tugged on her hand.  She nodded nervously.  “Remember it’s just me and you.  Connect with me okay?”  She nodded again and let him lead her out onto the floor.  She shut her eyes and erased the audience from her mind.  Peeta smiled when she looked at him like the only man left on Earth.  He ran his hand up her side and they started the dance.  She was dancing better than she ever had in rehearsal.  She was on fire. He spun her out and pulled her back into the last movements of the dance.  When he pulled her up from the dip instead of putting her head on his chest as he’d choreographed she continued moving towards him and pulled him into a kiss.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for all the comments and feedback. It really does keep me going. You guys are the best!


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